The 'L' Word
December 2012
“Be sure of this: I am with you always, even until the end of the earth.” Matthew 28:20
For the last four years I have dealt with the ‘L’ word and if you were to be honest; at some point in your life you have too. This infamous ‘L’ word is none other than LONELINESS. The truth is, at this very moment in my life I don’t have a lot of friends. There has been many times when I felt like I was all alone. Many tears have been shed, but thank God that now after almost 4 years I can truly say that when God is all you have, you have all you need. Friend, today we are going to deal with this ‘L’ word.
1. Why do I feel lonely?
Remember, earlier this month we talked about being complete in Christ? Well, feeling lonely not only has to do with you putting other things/people in the place where only Christ should live, but it also stems from a lack of an intimate relationship with Christ. Hear me well, I am not saying you don’t love Jesus or that you don’t spend time with Him…but I am saying that when this ‘L’ word comes into our lives it is usually a white flag waved by Christ that reads….”Deeper. Closer. I want intimacy.” Many times we confuse intimacy with knowledge, but Christ is saying, “There is a difference between knowing about Me and knowing Me.” Friend, the truth is that just knowing about Jesus won’t help with loneliness….but knowing Him will.
You see the problem is not knowledge. The problem is that you can have knowledge without intimacy. In order to conquer the feelings that are associated with the ‘L’ word we must, must, must……dig deeper, come closer, and be intimate with Christ. After all.......
“The best cure for loneliness is developing an intimate relationship with Christ."
2. Is the ‘L’ word necessary?
For me it was and for many of you, the ‘L’ word is. It was through this process that Christ stripped me of every friendship that I was dependent on. You see, He wanted my full attention. He wanted my whole heart. He wanted my dependence to be on Him and Him alone. He also wanted to protect me. Often times the “friend” that you think is so right….is really all wrong for you. Note that this does not mean that the “friend” is a bad person….sometimes they are just not meant to be in your life. Friend, you must always remember that the calling on your life is valuable. You cannot afford to hold on to the things and people that God Himself is saying to LET GO OF! Will it hurt? Sure. Will you be alone (in a physical sense) at times? Yep. But will it be worth it? No doubt about it. My mother always tells me about the little boyfriend that she had when she was in college and how she thought he was good for her and how she thought that he was the one. She always ends this by saying, “But girllllll I thank God that I did not marry that guy! He was not for me! My life would have been completely different!” Now although I’ve never had a boyfriend, I can relate to this story, because the same “groups” that I did not quite fit into I now can say, “Chillllldddddd, I thank God I did not fit in. That group was not for me! My life would have been completely different!” Friend, this will be your testimony one day…your story may be like my mom’s, your story may be like mine….or your story could be completely different…but I do know that one day you will thank God for this season.
3. So how do I deal with it?
EMBRACE IT! See it as an opportunity to spend more time with Christ and to truly serve Him with undivided focus. Live. Really live. Don’t stay home crying and feeling sorry for yourself. Surrender your all to Jesus. Laugh. Love hard. Give. Forgive.
AND always remember that although during this season you may be alone in the physical sense….you are not alone!
Christ is always with you!
He understands and He cares. He loves you too much to have you depending on someone to do for you what only He can. He loves you too much to have you in relationships that were not ordained by Him. He loves you too much to not protect you. So today, whenever the enemy brings up that ‘L’ word….call him the other ‘L’ word and rejoice because Christ has set you apart. Elisabeth Elliot said, “Loneliness is a required course for leadership!” Rejoice, because Christ has called you to not only exist…but to live and to leave your mark on this world for His glory. “If God is preparing you to make an impact on this world for His kingdom, chances are He will take you through a season of solitude. This is a season when you learn that you can’t lean upon anyone for your confidence and when you gain the strength to stand alone even if no one else stands with you.” Don’t despise this season. “Don’t despise loneliness. Rather, allow it to chase you into the ready arms of your King. If you turn to Him instead of trying to fill the void with other things, you will find that He is ready to meet your every need. You’ll also discover that He may be using loneliness to prepare and equip you to be a leader, to stand firm when everyone else’s courage is failing, and to live for the applause from your King alone.”
Friend, don’t cry about this season. Embrace it and get ready because Christ is getting ready to show Himself strong in your life! Get excited. The God kind of joy is what will get you through this season! Smile. Live. Be Joyful. Get to know Christ. He will never leave you or forsake you. He is the closest friend that you will ever have. YOU ARE NOT ALONE!
Be encouraged!
For the last four years I have dealt with the ‘L’ word and if you were to be honest; at some point in your life you have too. This infamous ‘L’ word is none other than LONELINESS. The truth is, at this very moment in my life I don’t have a lot of friends. There has been many times when I felt like I was all alone. Many tears have been shed, but thank God that now after almost 4 years I can truly say that when God is all you have, you have all you need. Friend, today we are going to deal with this ‘L’ word.
1. Why do I feel lonely?
Remember, earlier this month we talked about being complete in Christ? Well, feeling lonely not only has to do with you putting other things/people in the place where only Christ should live, but it also stems from a lack of an intimate relationship with Christ. Hear me well, I am not saying you don’t love Jesus or that you don’t spend time with Him…but I am saying that when this ‘L’ word comes into our lives it is usually a white flag waved by Christ that reads….”Deeper. Closer. I want intimacy.” Many times we confuse intimacy with knowledge, but Christ is saying, “There is a difference between knowing about Me and knowing Me.” Friend, the truth is that just knowing about Jesus won’t help with loneliness….but knowing Him will.
You see the problem is not knowledge. The problem is that you can have knowledge without intimacy. In order to conquer the feelings that are associated with the ‘L’ word we must, must, must……dig deeper, come closer, and be intimate with Christ. After all.......
“The best cure for loneliness is developing an intimate relationship with Christ."
2. Is the ‘L’ word necessary?
For me it was and for many of you, the ‘L’ word is. It was through this process that Christ stripped me of every friendship that I was dependent on. You see, He wanted my full attention. He wanted my whole heart. He wanted my dependence to be on Him and Him alone. He also wanted to protect me. Often times the “friend” that you think is so right….is really all wrong for you. Note that this does not mean that the “friend” is a bad person….sometimes they are just not meant to be in your life. Friend, you must always remember that the calling on your life is valuable. You cannot afford to hold on to the things and people that God Himself is saying to LET GO OF! Will it hurt? Sure. Will you be alone (in a physical sense) at times? Yep. But will it be worth it? No doubt about it. My mother always tells me about the little boyfriend that she had when she was in college and how she thought he was good for her and how she thought that he was the one. She always ends this by saying, “But girllllll I thank God that I did not marry that guy! He was not for me! My life would have been completely different!” Now although I’ve never had a boyfriend, I can relate to this story, because the same “groups” that I did not quite fit into I now can say, “Chillllldddddd, I thank God I did not fit in. That group was not for me! My life would have been completely different!” Friend, this will be your testimony one day…your story may be like my mom’s, your story may be like mine….or your story could be completely different…but I do know that one day you will thank God for this season.
3. So how do I deal with it?
EMBRACE IT! See it as an opportunity to spend more time with Christ and to truly serve Him with undivided focus. Live. Really live. Don’t stay home crying and feeling sorry for yourself. Surrender your all to Jesus. Laugh. Love hard. Give. Forgive.
AND always remember that although during this season you may be alone in the physical sense….you are not alone!
Christ is always with you!
He understands and He cares. He loves you too much to have you depending on someone to do for you what only He can. He loves you too much to have you in relationships that were not ordained by Him. He loves you too much to not protect you. So today, whenever the enemy brings up that ‘L’ word….call him the other ‘L’ word and rejoice because Christ has set you apart. Elisabeth Elliot said, “Loneliness is a required course for leadership!” Rejoice, because Christ has called you to not only exist…but to live and to leave your mark on this world for His glory. “If God is preparing you to make an impact on this world for His kingdom, chances are He will take you through a season of solitude. This is a season when you learn that you can’t lean upon anyone for your confidence and when you gain the strength to stand alone even if no one else stands with you.” Don’t despise this season. “Don’t despise loneliness. Rather, allow it to chase you into the ready arms of your King. If you turn to Him instead of trying to fill the void with other things, you will find that He is ready to meet your every need. You’ll also discover that He may be using loneliness to prepare and equip you to be a leader, to stand firm when everyone else’s courage is failing, and to live for the applause from your King alone.”
Friend, don’t cry about this season. Embrace it and get ready because Christ is getting ready to show Himself strong in your life! Get excited. The God kind of joy is what will get you through this season! Smile. Live. Be Joyful. Get to know Christ. He will never leave you or forsake you. He is the closest friend that you will ever have. YOU ARE NOT ALONE!
Be encouraged!
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