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Choose the Topic you would like Al to Address: Choose a Topic Below... Love Sex Pregnancy Loneliness Priorities Too Busy Insecurity Material things Rejection Anger Forgiveness Suicide a Sin Witness God's Will Ministry Satanism Security Death Salvation? I feel suicidal Bad Language Drugs/Alcohol Addiction Gossiping and/or Lying Guilt Trust Smoking or Dipping? Abortion Occult Suffering My parents hate me Rebelling Obedience Sharing Jesus with Parents Divorce Question 25. I have a problem trusting people because I have been hurt so badly in the past. How do I let others get close to me? Have you ever had someone bump into you in the hall at school? If your arm was just barely touched, it didn’t hurt at all. However, it you were hit a little harder, it might cause a little discomfort, but the pain would go away very quickly. Why? Because your arm was healthy and well. But, what if your arm was broken and someone bumped into it? Ouch!! You would put a cast on it immediately to protect your arm from further injury. With an unhealthy arm, even the slightest touch is agony. So you pull back from people or anything that might cause you more pain. If it is hard for you to trust, it is because your spirit has been broken and wounded like that injured arm. That walls you have built around you are like the cast. You think they will protect you from getting hurt again. Unlike an arm in a cast, though, your spirit cannot heal behind walls. The story begins like this: You get hurt by someone you trusted. The only way the wound in your spirit can heal is to forgive that person. But you do not forgive, so the open wound just gets worse. Now you’re walking around with an infected scar, and someone else offends you. The sore gets larger and more painful. It doesn’t take a hard hit to bring you pain. Even the slightest offense is agony because your spirit is wounded and sick. Eventually you get tired of the constant pain, so you put a cast on your spirit. You built a protective wall around you and withdraw from anyone who might hurt you. The only way you will ever be able to trust again is to forgive everyone who has hurt you. When you forgive, God heals your spirit, and things and people that used to hurt you easily don’t anymore. Just as there is no need to put a cast on a healthy arm, there is no need to wall up around a healthy spirit. That does not mean you will never be hurt, disappointed, or let down again. But, it does mean that if you will forgive every time you are hurt, you will stay healthy and be able to trust again. Jesus is a friend you can always trust. No matter what happens, he’ll never disappoint you or let you down.