You can say what you’re praying… or what you hope God will do… or that you’ve felt abandoned too but later discovered God was working… or just that you’ve taken a minute to lift her up in prayer. Just something so she knows that she is not alone, that God hears her and maybe His answers will come through a stranger’s words for her? OK… go! (And thank you!)

The responses were so real. So true. Words from people who have been there. From those who have struggled. Some people simply lifted up my friend in prayer, and some shared advice. A few people have told me how much these stories and words of encouragement meant to them, even though they may not have been “for” them. But I beg to disagree.

God often answers our prayers through the words of someone else. And He may answer more than one person’s prayer at the same time—like when I finally sold my house, and realized that he answered my prayer by also answering the prayers of the woman who bought it. We build our faith when we share our stories, when we open ourselves up and reveal the pain—because those are the things that connect us. So I’m posting all of the responses (minus the names of the posters) below. Maybe one of these things is exactly what you‘ve been needing to hear!

• I know the feeling of abandonment. There have been times in my life that I felt all alone only to discover that God’s been there the whole time. Don’t give up! Just give it to God. It’s all in His time.
• Let go, let God!
• There are people around you who care. They just aren’t saying so. Ask someone for a hug. Many people assumed I was ok until I told them I wasn’t. I guarantee there is at least one human who will stand by you.
• I’m praying that God gives you a sense of peace and love. I pray that he also gives you strength and wisdom! I pray that you never feel alone again and know God is always with you! I Jesus name I pray… Amen.
• Give yourself time to overcome your problem. Sometimes you end up happier in ways that you never considered. Reach out to a friend.
• In the darkest night, know that the still presence of God exists for you.
• When I was born, I was born abandoned, no one wanted me… IKR: How could anyone abandon a baby?? Well they did… Thanks be to God he placed me in the care of great parents who adopted me… However that feeling inside, carried way up into my adult life;aAt about 25 I was PRAYING and God spoke to me and said; “Don’t you know that from your very first breath, I have been the one taking care of you? What makes you think I’m gonna stop now?” He feels the same way about you! I am a witness he’ll carry you through! 🙂
• God is with you all the time and many others care for you. I will pray for you.
• Jesus knows our feelings and is an ever present help if we just sweetly speak His name.
• Dear Jesus I thank you, because of you, we are never alone. You are our strength and our joy in the time of sorrow and disappointment. I pray comfort with your love. In Jesus’ name, amen.
• God will never leave you ! He will NEVER give you more than you can handle. BELIEVE. Prayers lifted up for you.
• This isn’t for me, but I needed to see this today. I didn’t even realize I needed to see it, as I sit here in tears. Thank you Kelly. I’m soaking in these words.
• Praying for your friend to find peace, comfort and courage in Christ and his presence.
• Praying for your friend to know that God is with her and that God loves her. He is holding her in His loving arms.
• Trust his power and never doubt his strength… GOD is always there even when we are away from him…
• Sweet friend of Kelly’s, you’re never alone. Jesus is always with you.
• Just prayed for you to feel the love of strangers going out to you and for JESUS to envelop you in his arms to give you peace. AMEN!!
• Dear friend of Kelly’s, since you are a friend of Kelly’s I know you love the Lord. Look up, and say,” Thank you Jesus for all the blessings (name as many as you can) you have given to me today.” Take in a deep breath of air and let it out slowly, and thank Him for each breath.He loves you so much and will never leave you. Tell Him how you feel and how you want to feel. Let Him take on your burdens and sorrows. If you can, smile as you think of how much you love Him and He loves you. Now, I pray that Jesus will give you strength and comfort and take away your sorrows and troubles and replace them with joy and happiness. In Jesus’ holy name….
• Dear Kelly’s friend: I am going to tell you that life can really feel bad. I am going to tell you that we can feel alone, forsaken, hurting, bewildered and bitter and God is the same. He is the same as when we feel loved and nurtured and peaceful. I am going to say that you are blessed beyond measure because you are loved. I am going to tell you that you are being lifted up by total strangers because Kelly is such a lovely person and she loves you enough to reach out to all of us on your behalf. I am tough loving you because I have been in the depths myself and I know that GOD is the same and that you will come through this because you can and will find your strength in Jesus… It’s the way of faith. Believing for things that ARE NOT SEEN. But your time of healing will come. Now I am going to send you one of those crazy facebook hugs and whatever gives you joy I say GO DO IT! Our lives are short…lets do this together! <3
• Praying and asking God to strengthen you at this time. We are all His creation and He loves us all! Just remember you were fearfully and wonderfully made.
• I am in a season of rejection and living with a wounded heart. And yet. And yet. God has not rejected me and I am living in His love. The important thing was not to be right (or to be well thought of) but to love.
  Paul states that he was abandoned by those close to him—those he trusted. But then he focused on those who were faithful.
  Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. —Galatians 6:9
  So how can we love others as Jesus loves us and participate in the kingdom work to which we are called? By loving others when its hard, when it costs us something, when it’s not convenient. By choosing to be loving even when we are wronged, misunderstood and rejected.
• What a blessed soul you are,with Kelly, busy as she is, calling in all who understand your pain. All these people and more, are reaching out to you as best they can—in so doing all of us are being lifted.We are the Body of Jesus Christ, His hands extended. I am thankful for your need being shared today, because it has drawn all of us closer to each other, and to our Redeemer, Jesus Christ. Keep on believing, never give up. You can make it. <3
  
• Feel, deal, HEAL…. allow yourself to grieve,then figure out how to deal with it (might include asking others for help), & then the healing will begin. Blessings and prayers for a better tomorrow….
• My husband has recently encouraged me with the story of Naomi in the book of Ruth. Long story short, when Naomi and Ruth went to Bethlehem, Naomi wishes to be called “Mara” because she felt God had forsaken her. God showed his faithfulness and provision through Boaz in a time when Naomi felt she had lost everything (husband and two sons). Sometimes we will never know or understand God’s plan or what He is doing, but His promises are true. It sometimes does take constant reminder and encouragement. Thank you for posting this, Kelly. I pray all of this support and encouragement fills your friend’s heart with warmth and reassurance.
• I don’t know your name or your circumstances, but God does. I don’t know the trials and agonies of your heart or the journey that brought you into the moment you are in. But I do know that God knows. And that His knowing, and our FEELING like He knows and cares, don’t always match. But it doesn’t make it any less true. Over time I’ve come to learn how He works and speaks in my life, and to recognize when He’s present…….so I pray that you learn these things about your relationship with Him, too, if you don’t already. Learning to keep my heart open when I want to close down, was challenging, being open to other possibilities and a bigger picture than the one I was seeing/experiencing, was challenging….but it’s been well worth it. You are not alone, even tho I get that it feels like you are. You’ve got unmet, silent friends out here, lifting you up. Keep inching…and as crazy as it sounds: Sing. Sing your pain, your fear, your doubt, your anger….whatever you’re feeling, sing it out loud….and see what happens. You might be pleasantly surprised.

  
• Always and forever He is with you. His rod and staff comfort You. He leadeth you beside the still waters. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow you all your days. He is your Lord and Shepherd. He will not abandon you or leave you defenseless. He’ll fight for you, hide you under His safe protection. LOVE wins.
• Prayers for your friend.
• Life is a challenge. Remember those who care and love you can help
  you through!
• Whoever you are, you are fearfully and wonderfully made by a loving God. God has a plan for you and although life can be tough and we don’t understand the trials, He can use our weakness and give us a peace beyond understanding. Please know you are loved and being prayed for by many.
• Joshua 1:5 I will never leave you nor forsake you. We can ALWAYS count on God! He loves us more than we can imagine! Just bring your cares to Him….He is the only one who can take care of us.
• Lifting you up in prayer. Pain and struggle are His way of getting our attention about something in our lives. Our perception of loneliness or abandonment my be His way of reminding us that we are never alone and if we abide in Him we ARE ENOUGH. Sending peace
• Praying for you. I believe that God’s grace can see us through any trouble. God bless and keep you in the palm of his hand.
• This scripture has been vital for me for years…it is my go-to scripture… “Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.” Proverbs 3:5-6
• What I know for sure is that God is listening. Give it to Him and let Him do his work in you and for you. Lifting you up.
• I saw this earlier today and have been thinking about it… all I can say is that I have felt abandoned by God many, many times in my life. But I’ve tried my best to maintain some sort of Faith in Him even when I didn’t feel like doing it. And He always comes through for me. Not always the way I wish He would, but He has given me everything I needed for every single day of my life. Keep praying. Keep trusting. He’s there. He never goes away.
• For this one day, let go and let God.
• My God shall supply all your needs according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.
• Do you remember what you were doing last year on this day? Last December 19th? Whether it was a fabulous day or a regular day it is now a memory. Whatever your struggle is now, it will be history in the blink of an eye. Abide. Watch. Amazing things are ahead.
• Sometimes God seems oh so far away. He is silent when I think I need answers. Or, He answers but I don’t like it. Sometimes I just don’t WANT to hear from God. But, whatever the situation, I have found Him to be faithful. His love is relentless and we who belong to Him will always find our way back to Him. It’s just the way God works. Praying for peace and clarity in whatever situation you find yourself.
• God is the only one who will never leave us or forsake us we have to have HOPE—Having Only Positive Expectations of what God is doing in us and through us. He will bring good out of all circumstances and trials Romans 8:28
• You are so covered in prayer by all of us FB prayer warriors. We are a team that know God is real and our Creator. I can assure you He cares for you because He made you in such a precious image. He stands by you and you can’t see Him. He hears you and whispers sweet breaths of love and comfort to you. He will bring forth a mighty answer in a gentle way. Be ready.
• I don’t know you but will be lifting you up in prayer and asking our good Lord to wrap you in his healing white light!!!! Kelly, thank you, what an AMAZING group of prayer warriors you have. I have read every wonderful comment and your friend Jama’s post really spoke personally to me. I literally felt as if he answered an unspoken prayer for me through her post, even though it was not intended for me! So thanks for that and God Bless <3
• God is our refuge, the lily of the valley. He is faithful to see us through. Keep praying daily. Keep the faith and I’ll be praying for you.
• I pray strength for you for I know it’s not easy and more important GOD knows. Our strength is in God. Where else would we go, so we run to Him. His arms are wide open waiting on us to cry on his shoulders and when the crying is done he fills our heart with strength. He says when you pass through the waters I will be with you. You will make it through and there is strength on the other side. Jesus is our Strength.
• Life breaks and falls apart, but the Cross says these are all places where grace is. Whatever is happening in your life, it will not be unredeemed…
• To your friend—2 Corinthians 3 & 4—Blessed be the God and Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. God created you, so you have to be very beautiful. God will not leave you, He is with you all the way. You may not know this but God is carry you. (Praying)
• To your friend: You are an amazing person, and through your struggles a light seeks you. It has me and I am still working to fully accept the light. Be strong. I am stronger now than before because of the struggles I have faced and you will be too. Keep your head high and praise our holy Father because without him we would be nothing. Bless you darling and have a great day. Enjoy your struggle the solution will find you.
• “But he knows the way that I take; when he has tried me, I shall come out as gold.” Job 23:10 ESV