Insight: I know how difficult it is to watch a family member suffer and in a way this is the same. The freedom from sin and the guilt that goes with it is an amazing gift. Those who have not experienced this gift first hand I believe are definitely suffering. They are drowning in the guilt of their sin and it is hard to watch. It is almost like you are throwing them a life preserver but they respond by saying they don't want it because of the brand name. This is trying and difficult, however I will try my best to give you not only some hope but some ways to stay strong. First of all I want to share some hope with you. In 1 Corinthians 7:12-14, Paul states "But to the rest I, not the Lord, say: If any brother has a wife who does not believe, and she is willing to live with him, let him not divorce her. And a woman who has a husband who does not believe, if he is willing to live with her, let her not divorce him. For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband; otherwise your children would be unclean, but now they are holy." Therefore the one encouraging thing is that your family is sanctified through you.
Secondly, continue to pray for them. Pray specifically that God would bring other Christians into their lives. Pray that the Lord would continue to show them his love in and through you. Pray that the Lord would use you to be a blessing to them and that God would protect you from the enemy while standing in the gap for your family. Lastly, spend a lot of time alone with God, in prayer and studying the Bible. It is when we spend time alone with God that He can give us the strength to keep going even in the most difficult of circumstance. This time with God will not only strengthen you, but it will also give you a clearer picture of God's heart for your family and may even allow you to have the right words to speak at the time when your family would be ready to receive it.
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Insight: It must feel like you are carrying a ton of bricks on your shoulders. I have a few ideas on how you could start dealing with these things and start to put them behind you. First of all, find someone you trust and share what has happened. Sometimes even being able to talk about it helps lighten the load. Secondly, if you really have trust issues and there is no one you feel like you can trust, try writing in a journal. Journalling is a great way to actually talk about what is going on and get out some of your emotions. Thirdly, you could give them over to God. When I was in Bible College my family was going through a lot. I felt overwhelmed by all of the problems and I felt like I was carrying the weight of the world on my shoulders, literally. My best friend noticed what I was going through and he offered to carry my burdens for one day so I could take a break. I laughed when he first mentioned it, but he was being serious. He said not only would he carry my burden for that day but he would pray for all that was weighing me down. I agreed to this and the next day, first thing in the morning we sat down together and I told him in detail every single issue there was, and after I was done he said, "OK, now they are mine. You are not allowed to worry or think about them at all today." The weird thing was I really did feel lighter and he really did feel the weight of the burden. By that night, he was very happy not to be carrying it around with him anymore. God taught me something very important through my friend. He taught me that if my friend was able to handle it for one day how much more could God the creator of the entire universe be able to carry my burdens for me if I let him.
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Connie BlackwoodI strive to help others by being a safe place for others to ask questions and pose issues they face. Archives
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