How to Cope with Trauma and Abandonment
Updated: Mar 2, 2023
Image: An elderly man sitting in a large, high-ceilinged room by himself and looking dejected. Image by Unsplash.
Trauma and abandonment. Recovering from trauma is complicated. But doable. Recognizing first that God sees and cares for you may be a hard truth to remember, especially after a wilderness experience.
Understanding that God cares for you requires a shift in your knowledge that we seek a transformation from pain and neglect to inclusion in His family.
There is a gathering occurring. On the one hand, Christ is gathering a people to go home with Him in mansions He has prepared. On the other hand, adversaries and accusers are gathering to keep us from that goal.
If we liken the journey of life with its trials to that of the children of Israel from the Red Sea to Kadesh-Barna, we can get a glimpse of how God “bears” us up, or “carries up” when we are weak. “And you saw how the Lord your God cared for you all along the way as you traveled through the wilderness, just as a father care for his child. Now he has brought you to this place.’” (Deuteronomy 1:31 NLT)
After neglect and trauma, it is so hard to feel loved. God is here to guide you to healing! The way to begin this healing is with trust. Trust that God will do for you what He says He will do. That’s called faith.
In other aspects of your life, you may not have any distrust of God. We sit on chairs, drive cars, and go to sleep expecting to wake up in the morning, but to remove our pain and trauma--Oh, no!
Why here? Perhaps because of a distrust of humans who have hurt and slighted you. But We cannot equate God with humans. He created humankind and had and still has a higher purpose for us.
How much we believe His word - the Bible – plays a significant role in our healing. Let’s not have a Kadesh-Barnea episode where we throw the towel in and walk away from the promise of a life free of PTSD and the recall of trauma that overshadows a life of joy.
