“Move toward your heavenly Father, and He will draw close to you in love.”
Thoughts from daily Bible reading for today – September 9, 2024
My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me. Matthew 26:38
Jesus experienced loneliness and was overwhelmed by sorrow. Though his friends were physically close by, they were far away in their understanding and empathy. Only His heavenly Father was His source of peace in His pain and comfort in His sorrow. The physical distress and extreme emotional pain caused His body to sweat blood, perhaps the first indicator of His shed blood that would be the price of His life to pay for our sins and suffering. His intense feelings help us remember that in our most extreme emotional conditions, in needing relief, we have a Suffering Savior who can relate so much that He enters into our suffering with us. Isaiah 53:3 consoles us, “He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain.” Jesus battled through pain and loneliness by crying out to His Father for relief and care.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who suffered extreme loneliness in a cold, dingy war prison, reminds us of the very real presence of Jesus Christ, who is with us and walks with us when we experience our own prisons of isolation, absent peace: “In our own loneliness, we must remember Christ’s own isolation in Gethsemane and recognize that we are not truly alone. We have a Savior who knows our pain and walks with us.” A Savior who knows and walks with us may be our only certainty when our circumstances seem fraught with conditions out of our control. In my times of feeling lonely due to feeling misunderstood, dismissed, or in constant physical pain, I have to remind myself that my Savior Jesus is with me and that He understands. Not only does He understand what I am going through, but He understands where I am going. So, I try to take a deep breath, sing a familiar hymn, and pray a simple prayer, like the Jesus prayer, “O Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God. Have mercy upon me, a sinner. Amen.” Moving from loneliness to not being alone brings peace. Peace in our Father is good; Jesus is our burden bearer, and the Holy Spirit our Comforter.
So, how do you move from feeling lonely to knowing you are not alone? Loneliness can feel overwhelming as if you’re walking through life unseen or forgotten. But here’s the truth: you are never truly alone. God promises to be with you always, even in your darkest moments. Psalm 23:4 reminds us that He is with us even in the valley of the shadow of death. When loneliness strikes, shift your focus from isolation to His presence. Pray, and let Him remind you of His love. Reach out to others as well—God often uses people to show us His nearness. When you are vulnerable to others, they usually become vulnerable to you. They begin to bare similar burdens, and in the process, you both can experience the healing reality of Christ’s love. You may feel lonely, but you are never alone. God’s presence is constant, and His love is more pervasive than any isolation you might experience. Seize this truth today and experience His peaceful presence.
Karl Barth, the respected theologian, sums up how Christ’s loneliness reconciled us to God: “In the loneliness of Gethsemane, Christ bears not only the sins of the world but also the alienation that separates humanity from God. His loneliness becomes our reconciliation.” It is so powerful how Jesus modeled moving toward His Father, away from His small world of isolation to His beautiful, expansive, abundant life of reconciliation so we might become His instruments of reconciliation. Move toward your heavenly Father, and He will draw close to you in love.
Prayer
Lord, in moments of loneliness, remind me that I am never truly alone. Help me feel Your presence, even in the quiet and empty spaces. Fill my heart with Your comfort and peace, knowing You are always with me. Guide me to trust in Your constant, unfailing love. Amen.
Application
What lonely place do you find yourself where you can invite others in and draw closer to your heavenly Father?
Related Reading
Deuteronomy 31:6; Psalm 23:4; Isaiah 41:10; Matthew 28:20; 2 Timothy 4:16-17
Worship Resource
Dave Pettigrew: Goodness of God
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