Have you felt alone during this season of lockdown?
The lie of feeling lonely focuses on physical location; if I have people around me, then I should not feel alone. Even for those who live alone in their home, the feeling can get dismissed by the number of phone calls, texts, zooms, etc. This crisis has not presented a new sense of loneliness but amplified a hum that people have sensed already.
Unhealthy responses to feeling lonely run their extremes. Some of us proceed into more profound isolation. We would rather not inconvenience people in their busyness. On the other hand, some of us fill our schedules and our days with more activity anesthetizing the ache inside of us.
Jesus, amid His greatest crisis, walked through loneliness. His disciples fall asleep during a prayer of agony before getting arrested. Later, as He hung on the cross, He quoted Psalm 22:1 in Matthew 27:46, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me…”
Stop to consider this thought – Jesus faced excruciating loneliness to walk with you through your agony, not to stamp a cliché that He is with you.
The writer of Matthew ends in 28:20 with these words of Jesus, “I am with you always even until the end of the earth.” Jesus is far more present in our seasons of loneliness than we could ever imagine. He knows.
You’re not alone in your feelings…Jesus has walked through anxiety, worry, fear, disappointment, and anger. You have communication with a Savior who understands the emotions of humans.
You’re not alone in your thoughts…Jesus walked through all the worst-case scenarios. The fact that the writers of scripture remind us He spent time alone reveals to us Jesus had space for thoughts.
You’re not alone in your doubts…Jesus asked for alternatives to the cross. At times it feels like we are not safe to share our doubts, but throughout scripture, we encounter a God big enough to hear our heaviest doubts.
When we acknowledge our feelings of loneliness, we soon discover Jesus’ grace, mercy, and acceptance. The lies that can run rampant in our heads soon succumb to the truth of the gospel. Light demolishes the darkness.
Do you feel alone today amide this crisis? Share a comment in the section below, and we will pray for you.
You are not alone.
Photo by Nicholas Barbaros on Unsplash