Only Human

“Even if my father and mother abandon me, the LORD cares for me.” Psalms 27:10

Hey my loyal readers! First of all, how do you like the new look? The more you all stuck by me and continued to read the more I owed you a pleasant place to read and an easier time navigating. So I hope you love it as much as I do and continue to be loyal and show me love. Loyalty. That’s actually a perfect segway into what I want to talk about for the next few weeks. What does it mean to be loyal? The dictionary says it’s giving or showing firm and constant support or allegiance to a person or institution. One of the main reasons we show loyalty to a person or institution is because we Love them. But Love is a tricky and complex emotion when you get down to it (Look up my early entry called Love Is… to see what I’m talking about) and sometimes, Love can be fickle.

Or can it? Is it Love that’s fickle… or people? Maybe you get where I’m coming from because you’ve seen when Love (or people) chooses to be fickle. You know what I’m talking about… betrayal. When someone you love and who loves you stops showing you love and now they seem to feel the exact opposite. Now they seem to hate you. Or at the very least, they’re Angry with you. But why? There’s a number of reasons why this could be happening. Maybe they never loved you. Maybe they feel threatened by you. Maybe they’re jealous. Maybe you did something to hurt them. Or maybe you just grew apart. No matter the reason, the relationship is now changed, and you have to find a way to live with… or without… them. How?

Before I dive into affirmations, I’d like to point out one person in particular who knows all about fickle hearts… King David. The Old Testament is full of stories about times that David was betrayed and how he betrayed others. We’ll be keeping him close as we go through this theme. Now, let me affirm you on some simple coverall’s for dealing with fickle hearts and betrayal.

Affirmation 1: Everything changes, and that’s okay. If someone is treating you different, it’s because something changed. Whether it was a big change or a small change, the change has impacted your relationship and you can be okay with that. Being okay with change doesn’t mean being okay with being treated poorly, or taken advantage of. What it means is that you can grow from the experience and move forward with your life.

Affirmation 2: Betrayal can always be learned from. No matter the situation or circumstances, you can learn from betrayal. One of the biggest lessons to take from it is learning how you want to be treated. Betrayal doesn’t come from enemies. It can only come from those you love. And maybe you learn about healthy boundaries, triggers, and how to cope with trauma from a betrayal. Maybe you learn self care and mindfulness. Maybe you start going to therapy and become a better and healthier you. Learn to make the most of a harrowing situation.

Affirmation 3: Betrayers are only human. Betrayal is human trait and therefore everyone who has ever done it is flawed. Humans make choices that hurt other people (often times because they’re hurting themselves) and when you’re dealing with humans, it’s most effective to put your trust in a place that isn’t flawed. You all know for me that means trusting God to have my back when it seems no one else will. David knew that. He wrote “Even if my father and mother abandon me, the LORD cares for me.” (Psalms 27:10) David knew that even the people who are supposed to always have your best interest at heart sometimes fall short. And when that happens, he leaned on God. You can do the same.

So, my loyals, keep the faith. Betrayal won’t be the end of your happiness or your good days. We’re going to keep diving into this for a little while, so until next time remember to accept change, learn from it, and let people people. If you can keep focusing on that instead of the pain, you can get past it. I love you, and I’m rooting for you. Keep conquering.