BIBLE PASSAGE:
My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of the Lord;
my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.
(Psalms 84:2)
MEDITATION:
We can feel all kinds of loneliness in our lives at times, can’t we?
It’s a feeling of ‘aloneness’ so strong that it can seem like no one
notices us when we are in a group of friends. Some experience
loneliness in society, which can often be triggered by sorrow,
feelings of guilt for personal failures, judgment (either real or
assumed) from others for things they have done (or not done),
or suffering of some kind (physical, mental, emotional or maybe
spiritual).
The irony is, quite often when we feel lonely, we tend to isolate
ourselves from others, and that only increases our feelings of
loneliness. When we put ourselves in a silo, and shut ourselves
off from others, we can start assuming all kinds of things about
others that may not even be true, And, if they are true, we tend
to exaggerate them in our mind and make them seem far worse
than they are.
We can begin thinking we are carrying a heavy burden and no
one else really cares. The truth is, we may have family and friends
who really do care, are praying for us. and would like to do even
more, but they are unsure of exactly what to do.
The erroneous thoughts can cause frustration, which often leads to
anger over our unmet needs from others, or a feeling of helplessness
in not knowing how to rise above the suffering and loneliness. Anytime
we develop anger, we will likely shut out those we need the most, which
can create even more negative thoughts toward others, including some
who we need the most.
It can cause us to be abrupt with others and develop an attitude that
resembles superiority as we try to ‘reconnect’ with them. Rather than
patiently listening to those concerned about us, we might project an
attitude of knowing more than anyone else. This also pushes away
those who are concerned and want to help.
No one likes to be around someone who claims to have all the answers
and doesn’t want to listen to advice, even if the advice, and especially
if the advice is painfully honest. This anger and denial of the truth is
not conducive to a pleasant conversation between friends. It causes
others to ‘shut down’ on their efforts to help and encourage us.
Loneliness can be devastating in the world we live in, but there are
times when everyone experiences a loneliness in their relationship
with God. It may be a result of guiltiness over our own sins, a type
of stubbornness, or even rebellion. It could also result from our
refusal to do something we feel God wants us to do. We may not
be tithing, or He may be calling us to something specific that will
involve the use of our spiritual gift we have been given when we
received salvation.
Whatever it might be, we feel separated from God and we have
a yearning to be close to Him. It can cause us to be restless, uneasy,
and may even lead to depression. Man was made for God and when
we can’t sense His presence, loneliness can invade and dominate our
lives.
However, if we look at our relationship from His position, Jesus is
knocking at the door of our heart and saying,
“I want to come in. Let me in.”
He doesn’t push His way through our heart’s door and barge into
our lives. We have the responsibility to open our heart’s door and
invite Him in. When we are close to Him, we should remember and
be thankful that we are never totally alone.
ACTION:
We should ask ourselves,
Do I have a yearning to fellowship with the Lord?
If we don’t have this yearning, then we need to decide if He is
really Lord of our life. If we are restless, uneasy, depressed, or
have feelings of loneliness, then why not invite the Lord into
our heart and let the healing begin?
Some are guilty of convincing themselves (and others) that they
are Christians, when the truth is, they have never experienced
a ‘life changing’ encounter with the Lord. They may have had
a brief emotional moment, but when it was over, they returned
to the person they were before that experience.
When we are part of God’s family, we will have a long-lasting
devotion to the Lord and our life will constantly be changing
as we grow in our relationship, fellowship, and dedication to
follow the One we believe in.
‘Following’ means developing and incorporating His characteristics
into our own life. It means having the ‘fruit of the Spirit’ which is
outlined in God’s Word….
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness,
goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such
things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have
crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by
the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become
conceited, provoking and envying each other.
(Galatians 5:22-26)
When we replace our thoughts and feelings of loneliness with
a focus and commitment to developing the ‘fruit of the Spirit’,
our negative thoughts of being alone can be healed and replaced
with a new and exciting purpose for living, and we can have new
feelings of fulfillment in knowing that the Lord is always with us.
Pray,
“Heavenly Father, You know me better than I know myself.
You know if I have, or have not, invited You into my life and
had a real life-changing experience. You also know if I have
a yearning to grow closer to You. I don’t want to experience
a life of loneliness from the absence of Your presence. Lord,
I invite You into my heart today, and I am asking You to lead
me and fellowship with me every day, so I can avoid having
feelings of loneliness which can seize control of my life.”
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