Freedom from Loneliness

"Loneliness and the feeling that nobody needs you is the worst kind of poverty."  -Mother Teresa

Whereas, for most loneliness is a temporary feeling, for far too many of us it's a recurring experience. In addition, loneliness can also lead to many other emotional issues, such as depression, anxiety, and anger. Charles Swindoll wrote that loneliness is no respecter of persons, or age, that it knows no boundaries—that it visits all people.

I'd like to suggest a cure for loneliness. It's nothing that dramatic, in fact, it's fairly simple. It's not something wild or crazy, you don't need a doctor's prescription, and is available anytime of the day or night. Sounds too good to be true? I mean, after all, people will attempt all kinds of things to escape from loneliness. In reality, the remedy for loneliness has always been there; freely accessible to everyone.

Beloved, why not accept God’s cure for your loneliness? You see, it's our sin that destroys our fellowship with God. But Jesus’ death on the Cross means that the walls have been torn down. When we give our lives to Christ, accept Him as the payment for all of our sin, and accept His forgiveness, we are washed clean of our guilt and shame. And with our acceptance of Christ as our Lord and Savior, God becomes our Heavenly Father. And as our Father: He loves us unconditionally, and accepts us just the way we are!

Loneliness is a personal choice for the believer. I’m not talking about the "every-now-and-then" moments we all experience, but the lingering, extensive loneliness. God has provided you with everything that you need. If you choose to live in loneliness, that's your choice. God has given us His Son, His Word, and all of the brothers and sisters in faith. Now, that doesn't sound "lonely" to me at all!

The Bible mentions nothing about a "going at it alone" mentality. Nearly every book in the New Testament was written to a community of believers. For instance, every time the word saint appears in Scripture it's plural. Also, most of the time when the word "you" is used in the New Testament (although we interpret it as 2nd person singular) it's 2nd person plural.

I might add that while individualism is very common today, it's totally unbiblical and foreign to New Testament Christianity. We would find ourselves a very splintered group without the unity of believers serving each other by employing their particular gifts.

As long as there have been people, there has been loneliness. It's always been part of the human experience. However, the freedom from loneliness begins at salvation. The early church father, Augustine, said “God created man for Himself and hearts are restless until they find rest in Him.” If you’ve never entrusted your life to Christ, you'll never be free from loneliness until you do.

Scripture: Isaiah 41:10; 1 Peter 5:7; Joshua 1:5; Psalm 23:4; Philippians 4:6-7  

Prayer: Dear Lord, I realize that loneliness is common to everyone. I just want you to know how much I love and appreciate you; knowing that you are always there for me, never further away than a prayer. Amen

God bless you!

Riley