There are times when we’re cruising down the road of life thinking everything is going just great. We seem to know who we are, where we want to go, and how we’re going to get there. And, just when our destination seems to be coming into sight – BAM! Everything seems to go wrong and it feels like the wheels just fell off our car right in the middle of our journey.
In a split second, everything that could go wrong does go wrong.
While he was still speaking, yet another messenger came and said, “Your sons and daughters were feasting and drinking wine at the oldest brother’s house, when suddenly a mighty wind swept in from the desert and struck the four corners of the house. It collapsed on them and they are dead, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you! – Job 1:18-19
Steve is a friend of mine. He’s married with two children, lives in a nice house in a nice neighborhood of a nice town. He has been working hard on his career, building a solid client base, and starting to see some positive results from his years of investing blood, sweat, and tears into his business.
And then it happened.
In the matter of about a month, Steve’s wife told him that she didn’t love him anymore and wanted a divorce and his business partners told him that they wanted to rearrange their business deal and Steve was gong to get less of the business, effectively cutting his salary by more than 75%.
After I looked things over, I stood up and said to the nobles, the officials and the rest of the people, “Don’t be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your families, your sons and your daughters, your wives and your homes.” – Nehemiah 4:14
Steve was a pretty proud guy – always keeping a stiff upper lip and never really letting on to what was happening in his world. But I had an idea something was up. He just wasn’t himself. I would do the good friend thing when we got together and just try to listen when he wanted to talk. I would ask a few gentle questions to see if he felt like opening up. He did a little more every time we got together – but he was still guarded.
That was until the day I got a text message from him: “I am at my darkest place. Please pray for me.”
The wheels fell off and Steve was crashing.
The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. – John 1:5
We got together that morning and had breakfast. He told me he felt like he was drowning and, instead of someone throwing him a life preserver, they kept dunking his head under the water every time he tried to come up for a breath.
Many of us have been where Steve is. It might not be a marriage falling apart or a business deal going bad, but in some part of our life we have felt like we were in “our darkest place”. And, I hate to be the one to tell you, but if you haven’t felt like this, it’s likely that someday you will.
While we were at breakfast talking, Steve got a text message. Not knowing what it said, I watched as his eyes got glassy while he read it. He put his phone down, pushed his eggs aside, and buried his head in his hands.
“The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.” – Psalm 34:18
“My partners want to end our business relationship. There goes the rest of my salary and my bonus that I was hoping to live on for the rest of the year.”
What do you say to this? I could feel the pain radiating from his soul.
When you have fallen to the depths that Steve had at that moment, there’s not a lot you can say to someone to make them feel better. All you can do is listen and throw them a life preserver for them to hang onto so they don’t feel like they are going down for the last time.
That life preserver is God – our Heavenly Father.
“He reached down from on high and took hold of me; he drew me out of deep waters. He rescued me from my powerful enemy, from my foes, who were too strong for me. They confronted me in the day of my disaster, but the Lord was my support. He brought me out into a spacious place; he rescued me because he delighted in me.” – Psalm 18:16-19
Sometimes God needs us for Him to work through to help someone make it out of their darkest place.
We talked for a couple of hours.
Steve told me that he had no fight left in him and that he was ready to just give it all over to God. I could tell at that moment that he was ready to surrender to the forces that were trying to keep him down. I was worried that, through his thinking he would give it over to God, he was considering giving up.
When you give it over to God, you are asking God to guide your steps as you continue to fight forward.
“Look at how many times God has opened doors for you and helped you in the past as you were building yourself up before,” I told Steve.. “He’s going to do the same now. You just have to keep working with Him and give Him a chance.”
“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” – Matthew 6:34
“Steve, before you make any big decisions,” I said. “Let’s just try to get through the next hour. Let’s pray and ask God for some guidance and then just sit tight and let some of the dust settle on what’s going on around you. Let’s get through today first and not worry about tomorrow right now. Try to tackle one thing at a time. If you try to take on everything at once, you’re going to feel overwhelmed and defeated.”
A few weeks have passed and Steve and I have talked a lot about his situation. He’s taking it day by day and, although he’s not doing great, he’s doing better.
There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens: …a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, a time to tear and a time to mend… – Ecclesiastes 3:1, 3, 6-7
Just as the seasons turn from winter to spring and life follows death, our days are full of seasons as well: seasons of prosperity and joy and seasons of loss and sadness. Be assured though that just as there is light after every night and the sun comes out after every storm, there is a rebirth after every death.
Steve is entering a new season in his life.
He is keeping his faith in God and trusting that God will see him through this difficult time. He also knows that somehow, in a way that we will never understand, God does and will work all things together for His good and Steve is keeping his eyes open to find the new path God wants him to walk.
There is a lot of Steve in each of us. We have all gone through these dark times when we were just looking for someone to throw a life preserver our way. In fact, you might be going through one of those times now.
The good news is there is a rebirth awaiting you.
Think of the darkness that surrounded the hours after Jesus’ death. Yet in three short days, out of a tomb, hope arose. A new life emerged. A rebirth available to each one of us became available through the risen Christ.
Steve’s troubles are not going to be over in three days and probably not even in three months. Steve may have a lot of rebuilding to do in his life. But, as he begins to rebuild he needs to realize he’s got a great carpenter working next to him helping him rebuild – a carpenter who is there to help each of us in our time of rebuilding – a carpenter named Jesus.
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” – Matthew 11:28-30
hi,
My name is Andre Paul, and i suffer with anxiety and depression. At this point and time in life i feel like i too am at my darkest hour. I experience dreadful sensations through out my body, thoughts that are not my own, and more. Yet my affliction i know is due to my disobedience to our heavenly Father. I was afflicted for doing the opposite of what God had planned for me, in which he presented me with a thorn in my flesh to keep me reminded of his lack of tolerance for disobedient children he loves. The bible says “All things work for the good of those who love him,” and i know that this will work out for my good in the end, because through it all it has brought me closer to God, and has help me build my faith and trust in Him as well. i really enjoyed what you wrote and look foward to hearing more.
This story really hit home for me Ihve been there in my darkest place more then once never know who I was going to make wanted to give up I’m going through somwthing know as we speak, but I know GOD has another plan for me I hope a great rebirth is awaiting me. This is a great story.
This was a great piece… and something I needed right now. As a new widow this year has been a challenge. My husband and I had planned on a long battle against the cancer that attacked him. Instead, after one week of treatment, he ended up getting walking pneumonia which deprived his heart of oxygen.. leading to a sudden fatal heart attack. (January 31, 2012) I am grateful that he did not have to suffer but the suddenness of it all has left my head and heart spinning. Add to that two brother in laws with surgeries that left both fighting for their lives. In fact, my sisters husband has been in ICU for 3 wks following an 11 hr surgery followed by an emergency one the following day for bleeding. He is showing signs of improvement and I am so thankful for that. But it is hard and long.. for my sister and for my supporting her with trips to the hospital as often as I can. I am sharing this with her as she really feels like God is not there for her right now. She knows in her heart He is, but, as with all of us… sometimes when you are feeling as though the earth is closing up on you, you have a hard time sensing Him.. leaving you feeling totally alone. Thank you for sharing this. Blessings to you and your family… and friend.
My husband has been fighting stage 4 brain cancer since Sept. 2010. God hears prayers because that’s what we live on now. My husband shouldn’t even be here but he is and we take each day, one day at a time. Sept. 27, 2010 was definitely my darkest day. Every day since, I have been the caretaker of our family. It’s hard. Most days I don’t even know how I get through until I think for a moment. I have asked for strength and we have people, some of whom we don’t even know personnally, praying for us all over this nation. What a powerful force! His latest MRI shows chemo has been killing tumor cells. Really?! Seems impossible! Except all things are possible through God! He keeps my head above the water.
this is a beautifully written, full of grace and full of truth.
I have been diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer. I had surgery April 4, 2012 and will start chemotherapy soon. I know that God is using this, my dark place, for His glory. I feeling His blessings daily and have been bombarded with an outpouring of love and encouragement from family, friends, coworkers, and total strangers. I am keeping a positive outlook and know that “all things work together for good to those that love the Lord.” Thank you for this article and I will share it on FB, hoping that it will make an impact on the lives of others.
I can totally relate to Steve. Everything has seemed to unravel and there have been some really trying days. I read His word daily and pray without ceasing. Now and then there is a glimmer of sunshine and then the clouds gather again. The book of Job has been very helpful, but occasionally I do look for that life preserver. God has blessed me with good physical health and He uses exercise as a daily healing force. I continue to ask Him to guide my path. I pray for all who have this struggle for it is deep. I trust that God will one day get me back into the moving cars with wheels. Until then I will faithfully walk in His direction. Peace be with you all.
THANKS FOR ARTICLE, I’VE BEEN THERE, DONE THAT AND PRAISE GOD I HAVE DEPENDED ON HIM TO SEE ME THROUGH. JESUS IS MY LIFE. HE GAVE HIS LIFE FOR ME AND I GIVE HIM MINE. WHATEVER HAPPENS I KNOW MY SAVOIR LIVES. I WOULD LOVE TO WRITE A STORY IF YOU WOULD GIVE ME THE SPACE AND YOUR WISDOM.
IN CHRIST LOVE
JO ANN RODRIGUE
Thank you for writing this… my family has been going through the fire… and although I know that God is in control, it has been a huge battle. My husband was killed, and my youngest son is fighting for his life. God has been very faithful through the battle… and has sent many people and words in to comfort amidst the fire. Your article was very timely to say the least. Keep being faithful and sharing… it is a lifeline to many. My heart goes out to your friend Steve… and I will remember you both in my prayers.
Wow, I can’t believe I’m posting this but here it goes…This story REALLY hit home for me! In 2009, my husband was being deployed for 3-4 months {the longest we’ve ever been apart}. Emotionally it was very difficult for me for him to be many miles away for this long. While he was away, we continued to text, call, Skype any chance we could. My husband had told me he would be coming home the ending of March 2010. The day I picked him up at the airport, was the best feeling in the world. I was SO happy & excited to see him, but I sensed he was not as excited to see me (after 13 years of marriage, you know the person all to well). After 3 weeks of being home from his deployment, I began noticing changes in him (ie: in a happier mood, always on the phone, always on the computer (especially late at night when I had gone to bed). Well, little did he know that on one of these late nights, I was not asleep like I should have been. I could hear him talking with someone, and by the tone of his voice and the words he was speaking, I for sure knew it was not a guy he was talking to but a girl. Sure enough, from that day on, my life has been turned into one BIG nitemare! A few days after I had caught him having an affair, I tried to commit suicide by overdosing. Didn’t work of course, all it did was make me more ill when they had to pump my stomach. My husband refused to come and visit me in the hospital, even though he knew very well this happened because of his actions. I kicked him out of our beautiful home and he remained at a family’s place till today. The next few months after my suicide attempt was just the tip of the iceburg. He filed for divorce June 2010 and I had no money to hire an attorney. My last result was to contact my father, whom we haven’t spoken in the past 15 years (family drama). So, long story short on that my father was willing to help support me through this divorce. I had a job at this time, but did not make enough to pay our debts. During this time, my husband was sending money to this woman. Our money, to pay our debts with. Once the divorce was filed, we has to short-sale our home (if you’ve ever dealt with selling a home, you know the work involved in it AND for only one person to handle everything is very stressful), I had to find a rental based on my tiny income, arrange for friends to help with my move and clean up the house. All the while my husband is not financially supporting ME but the other woman. We’ve been battling court, spousal support, and all the ugly things that you go through in a divorce during the entire 2011. Aug 2011, I was in a serious car accident and Dec 2011 I lost my job. Where was God during all of this? Why did this have to happen all at once? Doesn’t He know I’ve been the victim in this and not the villan? Have I done such horrific things in my past to now have these things brought upon me?
I haven’t found my peace, comfort or joy in all of this and it’s been 2 years since it all took place. I’m at the very end of the cliff, ready to jump off! What do I do now? Why can I not find peace? How do I deal with the pain & hurt? My husband & I are not legally divorced yet, but he has had 3 affairs so far. I on the other hand have been praying, reading God’s word, I recently went back to church AND I pray very hard for my husband and marriage everyday!!
So, does this sound very similar to the story above?
Boy, I just came out of one of those dark places after 4 weeks in Season Depression that was the worst in years.
I have read these people’s stories, & mine wasn’t as tragic, yet “dark” neverless. God pulled me through… Ist it was black… then it got gray… I held on to the same “scriptures’ that was in Steve’s article. I wanted to give up… but had a good support group, therapist, friends. Everything is ‘turning around’ now… Thank you my Asweome God… & please Lord bless the people who responded here today. GIVE THEM HOPE & MOST OF ALL PEACE OF MIND.
Thank you for this article. You have no idea. Messages come at just the right time. Thank you for being a blessing to me.
I have been through the dark place….just seems like everything is going well and wham….I was feeling sorry for my self after some oral surgery….seems like my whole life I didnt think I was ever going to be good enough to be on God’s team….was physically and sexually abused when i was a kid….and seems like the evil one always reminds us and tells us lies….right when you think you are scum…..God tells you he loves you so much that he gave us Jesus…I know I have made a lot of mistakes…..I also know God don’t make no junk…we were bought at a price, so keep prayin steve and God will deliver you from your enemies…anyways i know….you dont have to be good enough….Jesus paid the ultimate price so we are good enough…amen……charles
When I read this article, my eyes was full of tears as i feel from what Steve is going through…I feel what he feels. We may not be in the same situation but the pain is all been the same…when you thought that things in your life seems to be okay and suddenly it changed into a nightmare…all you want to do is to wake up and see that things are still the same as good as it was. I pray for Steve, I pray for everyone and I pray for myself, that whatever things that we are facing right now…let’s join our hearts together and pray that The Lord will heal us in our wounds and Lead us into Peace . Oh, Lord, Guide us and help us to TRUST YOU MORE and we lay all our BURDENS into your feet so
as we WE CAN FIND PEACE in YOU.. Bless US , LORD, Bless each and everyone of us! Amen.
I feel like I’m in a dark part of my life. I survived two terrible divorces that I’m not proud of, cancer, and now my son is in jail facing a 10 year sentence. This has caused me to be depressed for the longest period of my life. I don’t know why God has put me in this circumstance. This was caused by my sons addiction. I have tried to pray for him throughout the years, offered him a place to live, helped him with his education, but all in vain. Now I’m totally not in control of his destiny. All the money in the world, education, jobs, cannot save him from his sentence. I feel sad, guilty, despair, lost, and mourn for the years we will lose together.
M
My best friend in my whole life I have known him since I was 15 & he was 16. He is going through the same thing his wife just told him a month ago she didnt love him anymore ( I am 57 & he is 58. Please lift him up to the Lord! God Bless and thank you.
Thank you for this text nobody knows when their darkest hour will come but praise God for His love toward and i can keep going forward in Him i am writing this with tears in my eyes because i was so touch with this man Steve problems only God can rebuild and heal a broken Man when the Wheel falls of God bless you all!!!
I read this yesterday and read comments so I would like to encourage each one of you. I woke up this a.m. praying and thinking~~I’ve been through everything you have gone through. The only thing I have not been through the death of a child. In my 60 years living my journey here on earth has had great times and time I thought would never happen! First I pray you are a Christian because without God in your life when you face each storm/trial it will be inpossible to make it. God is our anchor. He is our hope! We must trust Him because What God says in the Bible He never lies. When I got married at a young age of 19 I was on cloud 9. I was a Christian then! I was a faithful wife, let me get that point across. After 7 years of marriage we had a son, I was so blessed to have a son! When he was 3 1/2 his dad told me, I need to get out and find myself. He was 30. I knew in my heart there was someone else! If you haven’t found yourself by then well??? Then at 14 my son left me to go live with his dad. I was a single mother for 6yrs. My heart was broken into a millions pieces because we were so close, I would never have imagined he would leave me. He wanted to see what it was like to live with is dad. I could have stopped it because of him making a decision I felt wasn’t a home he needed to be in. Drinking, etc. I prayed and I even asked God why? I felt God say, “let him go I will place my hands over him.” So I did and it brought all the memories up about his dad leaving. I had remarried and he had a wonderful relationship with my husband but he wanted to go be with his dad. I believer it was mostly because of $$$. He is now 33 married 8 years and has a beautiful daughter that will be 3 soon. I’ve seen her maybe 10x. My mother died 1 month before his hugh wedding. Him and my mother and father were very close. Only God gave me strength to make it through that wedding. I had to face the person my xhusband had left me and my son for. This was so very hard but God gave me the strength to tell her, “Thank you for the years my son was living in yall’s home and whatever you did for him” do YOU KNOW HOW HARD THAT WAS? Very because she had robbed me of my husband and also my son. My grandmother I was very close to died in 1997, my father 75 died 1998, my brother 42 1999, my best friend 2000, in 2001 another great friend. In 2002 I had to have major surgery. In 2003 my intestines erupted and I was in ICU 5 day and had a near death experience. I had 2 major surgeries within a week. My son never came to visit and we only live 3 hours away. I prayed God would please take me to Heaven.in between here and Heaven I was so happy I was finally leaving here to be with Jesus I could not handle anymore hurt. I know I’m mixing all this up I just want you to know my life hasn’t been easy but GOD IS GOOD. In 2006, my husband and I lost everything due to a business partner that did things behind our back. He left town and left us owing a lot of money so we had to file for bankrupcy. It was horrible. We were making 250,000.00 a year and it was all gone. We had a beautiful home, heated pool etc. = GONE! So in 2006 I took 42 Ambien (Sleeping Pills) It was only because God wasn’t ready for me~~that I’m still here. The Dr. told me he had never in all his years of practice had he seen anyone live!! God did not promise us peace on earth. That will only be in Heaven~~no more worry no more tear + total peace. SO I COULD GO ON AND ON BUT I THINK MOST OF YOU CAN SEE HOW I HAD MY LIFE PLANNED OUT BUT ONLY GOD HAS OUR LIFE PLANNED OUT. EVEN AS A STRONG CHRISTIAN WE CAN DO THINGS THAT DON’T MAKE SENSE. BUT THAT IS WHY JESUS DIED ON THE CROSS, TO TAKE OUR SINS AWAY. I DID ASK FOR HIM TO FORGIVE ME~~~FOR NOT TRUSTING HIM AND FORGIVE ME FOR TRYING TO TAKE MY LIFE. STUFF, THINGS ARE NOT WHAT IS IMPORTANT IN LIFE~AND I HAD IT ALL MY LIFE, GREW UP IN A UPPER MIDDLE CLASS FAMILY AND HAD IT ALL, I THOUGH. I’VE TRAVLED AROUND THE WORLD TO MANY COUNTRIES AND WAS ON TOP OF LIFE. THEN WHEN I LOST MY HUSBAND TO ANOTHER WOMAN, LOST MY HOME WE WORKED SO HARD FOR, HAD TO SELL THINGS MY MOTHER HAD LEFT ME~~GONE, MY TOTAL MONEY/STOCK THAT WAS LEFT FOR ME~~GONE!! FOR IT WAS ALL GONE AND THEN AS I CONTINUED TO TRUST GOD~~~I REALIZED THE ONLY THINGS I HAD LEFT WAS THE LOVE OF GOD. HE DOES LOVES US AND HE SOMETIMES ALLOWS THINGS TO HAPPEN FOR US TO SEE ALL THAT MATTERS IS~~~TO TRUST HIM FOR HE WILL CARRY US THROUGH. HE WILL BUT YOU MUST TRUST HIM AND CONTINUE TO WALK CLOSE TO HIM. I STAYED IN BIBLE STUDIES AND I KNEW ONE DAY, STUFF IS STUFF AND WHAT MATTERS IN THIS LIFE~~~WHEN THE END OF OUR JOURNEY HERE IS OVER, WHAT WILL WE TAKE TO HEAVEN? NOTHING BUT OUR SOUL WILL BE IN HEAVEN. MY FRIEND REMEMBER SATAN ROAMING AROUND 24/7 TRYING TO PULL YOU OVER TO THE DARK SIDE!!! HE WAS REALLY TRYING TO DO THIS TO ME. GOD TOLD satan~~ YOU WILL NOT TAKE HER THERE. SHE HAS BEEN THROUGH ENOUGH. IS satan still after me, OF COURSE SO IT IS A EVERY DAY REMINDER, JESUS IS MY LORD AND SAVIOUR AND I WILL BE WITH HIM ON DAY. MY PURPOSE TO STAY HERE UNTIL GOD IS READY FOR ME IS TO REACH OUT AND TELL MY STORY. IS MY LIFE GREAT NOW, NO, I HAVE MANY HEALTH PROBLEMS~~~I STILL TRUST AND KEEP MY HOPE AND LOVE FOR JESUS. SO PLEASE GET IN A BIBLE BASE CHURCH. KNOW GOD DOES LOVE US~~FOR HEAVEN AWAITS. LOVE AND PEACE TO EACH OF YOU, STAY IN THE WORD AND READ ALL POSTIVE BOOKS CHRISTIAN BOOKS THAT WILL LIFT YOU UP AND GIVE YOU POWER to fight the evil one. I pray you take my story and know what is so very important~~you accept Christ as your Lord and Saviour, believe he died for “YOU” and Love you with an ever lasting LOVE. So my friends TRUST HIM, PRAY, PRAY, PRAY AND NEVER LOOSE HOPE. MAY WE MEET IN HEAVEN ONE DAY. PEACE OF THE LORD BE WITH YOU +
That was a beautiful story. I have 3 brain aneurysms and lost a job I trained myself for and worked at for over 25 years because I was considered a liability. Since then I have been put on Social Security Disability. I have been in a depression for weeks on end and cant seem to come out of it. I was awarded a large sum of money for being treated so unfairly. I had many friends and was very happy. now I feel I have no friends except for the ones who need or want money. no health insurance to speak of, lots of confusion, hurt feelings, sleep all the time. Pray constantly. Thank you for sharing the story and giving me a moment to express my feelings. I thank God for every day he gives me but, feel like there has got to be more to life than this constant state of confusion. Thank you Lord…for loving me when I am having a hard time loving myself.
The last few years have been very trying… My husband of 22 years sustained a brain injury(he had had many illnesses, and was mentally unstable) He lied to his sister and brother about my stealing money from him while he was in the hospital, and staged a phone “fight” using a very loud TV (that is the nearest I can estimate). His sister sucked it up as gospel truth and confronted me with the information… I was so shocked and baffled by what was an obvious untruth. There were many incidents of his anger toward me when he came home from the hospital, but the worst was when he and his sister drove to the bank and took out my name from OUR savings account and substituted his sisters. She then got all NEW doctors for him and barred me from picking up his extensive (for years) meds, made up some horrible things about me, and I was devastated..MUCH happened, name-calling, nursing services, neighborhood volunteer nursing abuse… almost too much to mention. I was a wreck trying to take care of things as I had for many many years…..
He had been abusive in the past and it got physical in the mid-2000s…His age was nearly ten years more than he originally stated for ME to write on the marriage certificate. We had a short pre-nuptual agreement which stated our possessions and that whatever we earned was ours to decide what to do with… it got suddenly”found” and turned out to be a combination of his brother’s attempted prenup and ours, re-constructed and mistakenly spelled and mistakenly stating what I owned… and supposedly TRACKING how every dollar HE earned was spent.. It had been put into a corporation of which I had no ownership… he never wanted to put my name on anything.. I quit my job to take care of him and his accounts!!!!!! I had been doing that for 12-13 years!!! I had no idea …duh!!
This all drove me to a psychiatrist, who told me to quickly get a lawyer…. I was being abused on many fronts!!!! I did, and went to the bank to take out the 5,000 $ to pay the attorney my friend recommended… and it was then I found out the money in the savings account was not in MY name and his anymore… what a shock…his sister had taken over. His brother distanced himself, and, I believe, worked with a lawyer undercover…. God knows what motivated them to do what they did… They obviously wanted to control his money and have more of it go to THEM when he dies. He lied to them and he lied to me , leaving things messed up and having them clean up after him financially and physically, legally, and personally as well!!!!!
I filed for a separation and left, leaving a note for his volunteer nurse and him that he needed to change things back and I was leaving… fortunately we had another house for me to escape to…. I was then sued for divorce by him and his family put him under a conservatorship as he had a mental breakdown. Having BREAKDOWNS was nothing new. I had always seen him “lose it” — and bore the brunt of his anger, along with anyone he perceived had “crossed ” him!!! … bad memories prevail and overshadow the good ones we managed to have…
This story is so long and convoluted that I must stop here.. I have not been dragged into the extreme depths of despair for HIS behavior.. my psychologist calls me a “walking talking miracle” and I have received my settlement, and gone on with my life as well as I am able… Praise the Lord is all I can say!!!
Women beware!! There are abusers out there, oh so subtle, who can persist in breaking another’s life down to wear them down and then throw them away… Just remember it is not YOUR behavior, and getting away from their clutches is the most wonderful thing you can do for yourself
. Love of money is no substitute for Love of Jesus… I pray they come to their senses . The divorce is long over and I am doing well due to the love of God and many good good friends who wondered how I stood it so long… My doctor even told me it was about time as I had been confiding my unhappiness in her for a long long time… my story is now being rewritten on the pages of time.. my chief job in my Sr. years NOW is to have fun… Thank the Lord for miracles
I needed this. I’m going thru very deep depression, anxiety, stress. So much that I have seizures(not from the brain-from the stress, etc), I have blackouts, I have memory loss, anxiety attacks that are strong and leave me worn out afterwards. I don’t want to go anywhere, my job is on the line due mostly from the memory loss. I forget how to do the easiest parts of my job and I’ve been at this job for about 14 or 15 years. I can’t balance my check book, my daughter has to keep up with it. I see psyc docs and counselors, been in a psyc hosp.
Been divorced since ’95 or ’96. There are 6 in my family (bros and sis) and the only one I’m close to lives on the other side of the country. I have 2 daughters and 4 grandkids, love them dearly. I’m lonely. I want to go back to church but have a hard time being around a lot of people and I’m also afraid I might have an anxiety attack or black out in the crowd. I love the Lord and I know He is with me. I need to get back into the Word and in deeper prayer. I used to be one that stood up front in church to pray for those wanting prayer. I was a strong person. I feel drained, empty, I get lost while driving to doc appts. The same doc over and over and I get lost each time. I can’t end my life, God wouldn’t want that and I do not want to hurt my family or leave them with knowing I left on purpose. It wouldn’t be good for them or my grandkids. I keep hoping this will end soon, I just don’t see the light at the end of the tunnel at all. I trust the Lord tho and He is my light and He will see me thru this. My life is in His hands. I hurt, don’t know what I’m gonna do if and when they let me go from my job. I just don’t know. I know I’m not crazy, the physicians tell me it’s stress, depression and anxiety. Just didn’t know it could do so much damage and hurt so much. God is in control and He will get me thru this.
I have to say I can relate to so many things here posted. My life was turned upside down in the year of 2009. I lost my job in january my husband at the time became depressed even more so then he was. I wasnt happy for a while in my marriage and i knew he wasnt either and yet to no vail he didnt want to do anythng about it he was just dragging on this negative attude and pity party. It was drainning and i was tired of holding it together. So bad choices were mad and he made some as well. I only know of affairs he had but part of me says he had more. We divorced he was with the woman that night i kicked him out. I knew somthing was up for a while. Today he is married and I know god will restore and give me back what i allowed the devil to take. I feel it and bible says it so. I just have to be paitent and listen and be still which is very hard to do for me. I am in a new journey of my life with god and i pretty much dont do a thing with out consulting him first. Hang in there everyone as I know our lord has a perfect plan for all of us. and most importantly His thoughts and plans are far better then our own.. That gets me thru the day every time.. God bless
Wow! This article shows a small fraction of the challenges and suffering we encounter in this life, yet the response on how to handle it is the same for everything. Whether it is health, relationship, career challenges.
I do believe those “seasons” we go through can be learning experiences too. Although some times I have felt like I was in the same classroom too long! 🙂
Our lives are the product of the decisions we make most of the time, some are not necessarily bad, but end up having bad consequences. I do believe that WOG is correct in saying we must look to God for guidence and then let the dust settle while waiting on the Lord’s response to our need. It doesn’t mean we quit, it means we weigh in intentionally what the word of God says to any given situation.
I’m new to this site and I’m already encouraged and inspired!! It’s true…when I’m suffering I seem to focus on what’s bothering me the pain/hurt so, this was a beatiful way to remind me that I’m not alone and need to trust HIM when those dark thoughts asail my mind. I’ve shared this with a few people on my job trusting that God will touch their lifes in a very special and powerful way. Thank you Elmer Laydon and my God continue to inspire you so that people like me can also share in HIs blessings !!