Faith & Feelings: Lonely

Photo via David Pacey @ Flickr

As a military wife, battling loneliness sometimes feels like a full-time job. Now, don’t get me wrong– I adore my Beloved husband and certainly support his mission. But when he is away doing said mission, grown-up conversation suddenly becomes a hot commodity.

If I am not careful, the cold fingers of loneliness creep into my heart… And Satan goes to town. Satan LOVES it when we are isolated, away from other believers and under the impression we are legitimately alone.

Fortunately for us, we are NEVER totally alone. Regardless of your season of life or how far friends/family might be from you, we must embrace the truth that we are never alone. (I am very passionate about this subject. Read some previous posts about loneliness here and here. Oh, and here’s a link to our Scripture Library on the topic of loneliness.)

So that’s where today’s post in our “Faith and Feelings” series brings us: dealing with the loneliness in our lives.

First things first: Just like the other feelings we are discussing in this series, feeling lonely isn’t a sin. It is simply our heart’s way of telling us that a little something is missing. That little something might be a simple fix like setting up a coffee date or play day with a friend. Or it might be much more difficult like trying to connect with a husband who is an ocean away. Our loneliness could even stem from a person that used to be in our life but is no longer with us, due to a loss or death.

In all circumstances, Christ knows what we are going through. He understands our loneliness.

There aren’t a ton of places in Scripture that talk about Jesus being lonely, probably because he was almost always surrounded by crowds and crowds of people. In all actuality, we find him trying to get away from people for a little bit of alone time with the Father God.

But Jesus still experienced loneliness. Think about the night in the Garden of Gethsemane before He was arrested. His disciples, whom he had dearly loved, were getting ready to betray him (be it intentional or otherwise.) Then what about that moment on the cross, right before He died? God was with Jesus every step of the way until that moment of death when Christ, taking all the sins of the world onto Himself, cried out: “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?!”

God couldn’t be near sin, so He had to briefly leave His son. Jesus was all alone. That emotional pain surely just multiplied the physical pain He was already feeling.

So dear friends, please… If you are feeling lonely today, take heart. Please leave a comment here so we can be praying for you. Share how you have learned to cope with your lonely seasons.

Embrace the truth that feeling alone is not a sin or something “bad.” It is just a feeling. Instead, we must let our faith drive us. Know that no matter where we are, what we do or who is (or isn’t) around, God is always, always ALWAYS with us.

That incredible truth alone can sustain us.

We are NEVER alone… And don’t let your heart (or head) tell you otherwise.

Always seeking Him,