"The girls at church smiled at me but talked about my family behind our backs—God's people are the worst people."
How it sounds in your head: They knew my dad lost his job. They knew things were hard. And they SMILED to my face and then I heard them whispering about us at youth group. If these are God's people, they're worse than people who don't claim to know Him.
"For it is not an enemy who reproaches me; then I could bear it. Nor is it one who hates me who has exalted himself against me; then I could hide from him. But it was you, a man my equal, my companion and my acquaintance. We took sweet counsel together, and walked to the house of God in the throng."
-- Psalm 55:12-14Source: trauma from religious betrayal - the unique pain of hypocrisy from those claiming moral high ground.
The betrayal feels worse because it came from those who claimed to represent Jesus, creating deep wounds about whether any Christian can be trusted.
His own son conspired against him, his trusted counselor joined the betrayal, and it all happened among 'God's people.' David fled weeping, but God turned the counsel of the betrayer into foolishness and restored the kingdom.
I REFUSE the lie that hypocrites define God. IT IS WRITTEN that even David was betrayed by those who walked with him to God's house—God SAW it and didn't defend them. I am seen, my pain is RECORDED, and God is on MY side, not theirs. IT IS WRITTEN in Psalm 56:8, 'You number my wanderings; put my tears in Your bottle.' Every tear from their betrayal is BOTTLED by God. I am Abraham's seed, and the BARAK protected even when God's people failed. The Father is not whispering about me—He's WEEPING with me and turning the counsel of betrayers into foolishness.
While they're smiling and whispering, the Father is collecting every tear in a bottle with your name on it and preparing to turn their gossip into foolishness. He's not defending them—He's defending you.