Last week I was driving our frontend loader. The trip was only 30-some-odd miles, but the top speed was about 24 miles per hour. That, my friend, is so slow you can count the blades of grass beside the road. It was then that I started reflecting on the difference between being alone or being lonely.
I know that at various times, I am alone; and at times, I am lonely. To be alone, is to be by yourself without another person around you at that moment. Lonely is to feel isolated, cut off, disenfranchised, or as if you are invisible, even when surrounded by people. You feel like you are not a part or you do not belong, even when you’re with family or friends. You may feel detached, sad, or depressed.
I believe that I am safe to say that we’ve all been there. Jesus, in the garden the night He was arrested by the Jews, seemed to show us that feeling. Maybe it was a fact. He had spoken to His disciples about betrayal at the Last Supper; Judas had already abandoned Him. It was not a surprise to Jesus but still a disappointment.
There is no Scripture that indicates Jesus treated Judas any differently than the rest. He had shown love and care to Judas, as well as the other eleven. It was so hard to see someone who betrayed what they had professed; even though, you had suspected it. Jesus, to the last, tried to offer Judas peace, but he rejected it.
Less of a sting were the sleepy eleven. Those disciples, under the influence from Passover, repeatedly chose sleep over attending to the one they called Lord, Master, Savior, and even Friend. Peter who had said, “yet will I not deny thee” just sleep through your hardest hour (Matthew 26:35). It was a very traumatic experience for Jesus. He had “great drops of blood” pour from His face (Luke 22:44) while alone facing a crucifixion death and the uncertainty of the purpose God had given Him.
When we feel alone, that is when Satan attacks us most. He says, “No one likes you or appreciates what you do. No one cares about your feelings or your purpose. You’ve made the greatest mistake trusting your friends, family, and fellow believers. You will die, and no one will care.”
It’s okay to feel rejected, offended, betrayed, disappointed, and forgotten. But as Jesus showed us, it is only a feeling – NOT a fact or biblical belief. Jesus showed us that the angels will minister (Luke 22:44) to us when we switch from feelings of forsaken to the biblical belief that God will never leave nor forsake us (Deuteronomy 31:6; Joshua 1:5; Hebrews 13:5).
Satan wants you to believe that you’re a victim by victimizing yourself with your feelings. You must choose to believe that (1) your entitled self-sympathy will make your life better or believe that (2) faith in God leads to freedom, peace, and joy. It is not wrong to feel lonely, just to stay there and wallow in your self-pity. Like the old farmer said, “Ain’t your fault if you fall in the pig slop. It is if you bath in it, though.”
So, get out of your stinking thinking, and
- praise God, because He will never leave you alone.
- Choose to have faith and believe the Word, not your feelings.
- Find another person that feels alone or depressed and say, “Jesus and I are here.”
– Written by Pa
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