January 10, 2014 (Friday)
Yesterday I entitled a blog, “Alone,” and should have entitled it, “Lonely.” There is a difference. One can be alone, yet not lonely. Likewise one can be surrounded by people and activity, and still be lonely.
Jesus occasionally withdrew from the crowds of followers to spend time in prayer with His Father. He intentionally found moments to be alone. We can follow His example and spend time alone with God on purpose. Throughout the Bible, there are verses that encourage us to do this. In such times we are alone, yet not alone, for God is with us.
Jesus also encountered people who were alone, but not by choice, as the lepers of that time, who were forced by law to separate themselves from others. Some people today are institutionalized or debilitated in some way and their days are spent alone. This forced solitude brings feelings of alienation and rejection, resulting in the condition of loneliness, which can be quite painful.
The plain truth is, we need other people in our lives. We need friends and family. We need to force ourselves to interact with others for their good and ours. God spoke after the creation of the first man, and said, “It is not good for the man to be alone.”
Except for the moments of solitude as He prayed, Jesus was constantly surrounded by people. But there was a time when He felt completely alone and lonely, and that was when He suffered on the cross. He cried out , “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” As He bore the pain and penalty of our sins, he experienced loneliness. He walked a road that only He could walk, as “the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.”
He suffered for us, died for us, was buried but rose from the dead and lives forever, walking with us, talking with us, and telling us that we are His own. Jesus promised to be with us all the time, and we claim His presence as we sing the old hymn, “No longer lonely, no longer lonely, for Jesus is the Friend of friends to me.”
No longer alone, we need not be lonely.