Wednesday, September 27, 2017

Finding God in the Loneliness

There's a song that I grew up singing, and the chorus goes something like this:

Jesus never fails, 
Jesus never fails,
Heaven and Earth may pass away,
But Jesus never fails.

Have you ever been in a crowded room, and felt so completely and utterly alone?  That just blows my mind how that can be.  But I can tell you I have experienced it more times than I can count.  It always seems to come in waves, and those days are some of the darkest days that I go through.  It's so easy to say, well, God is always with you, you know that, just lean on Him!  Yes, that is what we are supposed to do...but how often do we ACTUALLY do it? 

I can give specific times in my life when I felt completely and utterly alone.  The days after my best friend, my grandma, died; the day after we returned home from the hospital after miscarrying our second child; I could keep going, but I really don't want to add more sadness to my already aching heart.  You see, now is one of those lonely times.  Those times when my house can be a non stop parade of noise, but I feel like I am the only one around.  My husband works two jobs, and I just got hired on for an online teaching job.....so he works HARD for us.  And I miss him.  But I am SO thankful for him and how much he loves our family.  Our dog ran away almost 2 weeks ago, and as much as that dog annoyed me, I'm the one that misses her the most.  Friends seem few and far between and my heart is hurting about that.

Have you ever been in a situation where someone who thought was your friend pretty much doesn't act like you exist anymore?  That can be lonely.  Or maybe you are far from your family, and you rarely see them but for the occasional holiday.  Or maybe you are a parent who is dealing with an empty nest.  Maybe you are single, longing for the love that a relationship brings.  These all can be extremely lonely times!  But these are the times when we need to lean on the Lord.  I know, I know, that sounds so over said, but its so true!  It is probably one of the biggest lessons that I need to learn. 

As humans, we need other humans to love us and care for us.  It's just how we were made! As women, that urge is even stronger.  And as much as God wants us to DESPERATELY lean on Him, He also wants to see those desires for friendship fulfilled.....but in HIS time.  In Isaiah, it says "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord."  We may not know why the Lord is bringing things like this in our lives, but He ultimately knows best.  I was listening to Frances Chan yesterday in my devotions, and he was saying that all of the stuff we are going through is God's way of making our faith stronger.  It may seems SO HARD as we are going through it, but God is trying us by fire, to make us reflect Him in our lives.  

So as you go through these trials in life, no matter how hard they are, remember the ultimate goal....to become more like Christ, and to have His reflection shine through you.  James 1:1-12 is such a great passage for this.  "Count it all joy, when ye fall into divers temptations; knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience." 

God is always there for you.  He is working His perfect work in your heart, and daily we must give ourselves over to that work, and pray for the wisdom we need to allow Him to complete that work in us.  

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