Lonely People – Part 3 – Morning Devotions

By Chris WittsThursday 29 Dec 2022Morning Devotions with Chris WittsFaithReading Time: 1 minute

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Have you spoken to God about a feeling of loneliness? I’ve spoken about this a couple of mornings this week and it could well be that you need to change the way you think. Many people are lonely because they refused to change their thinking about loneliness. There was a little boy who was afraid of going to bed in the dark. But dad said to him, “Listen, son, you don’t have to be afraid because Jesus is with you,” and the little boy wasn’t totally convinced. “I know that, daddy, but I want someone with skin on.”

(Lonely People – Part 2 – Morning Devotions)

So that’s when we need to make the effort to connect with others, to be friendly, to reach out. And do you know that God will do his part and leading us to good people? That’s what we all need. We need good people who will interact with us and who will go on the journey of life. And I think that many of us, probably all of us have dealt with some feelings of isolation. But it’s really difficult when you’re going through a trying situation and there’s nobody there to encourage or help.

So what we want at that moment, uh, some things I want to mention companionship, support, comfort so that emotional pain that we might have will just go away. And if that doesn’t sort of come, that isolation just seems to go on forever. At times like this, we need to ask God for courage. And Sam 31 Verse 14 It says, I trust you, Lord, I claim you as my God. Why? Because my life is in your hands. And so if you can say, as the Sama said, my life’s in your hands God, I think you’ve got a better chance of overcoming loneliness. Did you know that God can use your loneliness to achieve his purpose?

And sometimes he allows these situations because they’re actually prime opportunities to develop some good things in us, and it can actually help us to depend on God to bring us into a closer relationship with him when we’re all alone and others just not there were not willing to help. Can I just remind you that God is the one who never leaves us. I’m really thinking here of Paul the Apostle Paul who, whilst he was a great man, he had the pain of loneliness after many years of service to God, he did find himself in this terrible situation in a Roman prisoner in a Roman prison rather than his last letter to Timothy actually gives us a glimpse of the conditions of those final days of his life. And so he was. Paul had given himself to serve other people’s coming towards the end of his life.

He was lonely. There was only Luke with him. And Dimas, who was one of his former companions, had shot through, as we say, deserted him and other coworkers had moved. And so here he was before the Roman court and he said, no one supported me. They all deserted me.

So Paul was a flesh and blood person. He had the weaknesses that we have. He struggled with some difficulties and feelings, just as we do. So put yourself in his place to feel the isolation. He missed the company of those people and Dimas was actually the one who left him it just was probably a very horrible experience. He couldn’t travel the world. He couldn’t spread the gospel like he had for so many years and starting the churches. And when he was called before the Roman authorities to make his defence, he was alone. There was no one there with him. And yet he is the man who says that we are not alone. We’re told that the Lord in the Scriptures stood with him and strengthen him so he could fully accomplish what he needed to do.

And so, at that time, although the Romans ruled the world, the ruler of the universe was standing beside Paul. And I’m sure as he faced court, he knew the courage when God stood by him.

So I think the greatest source of assurance is found in the Bible. I don’t know whether you read the Bible or not, but there are some great verses from the Bible. And the reality is that God will never leave you. God is there even when we find that we feel all alone, have a look at Hebrews 13:5 sometime and rely on the truth that God will never forsake you. And that He’ll never leave you.

Let’s Pray

Help us, dear Lord, to appreciate each other, we do need others. We need ordinary people, Lord, to share their lives with us. And we feel enriched when they make a connection. And that loneliness evaporates. So may that happen today I pray in Jesus’ name, amen.