You Are Not Alone
August 2018
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It’s amazing how a person can be in the midst of a crowd and yet feel completely alone. That person can even live a life in which there are people continually involved in his life yet feel all by himself.
On the flip side, it’s also amazing how a person can physically be isolated from others yet know, without a shadow of a doubt, that Jesus is with him, and He gives that individual great comfort. I hope that you, as a child of God, realize that you are not alone.
Actually, you’re never alone, regardless of your circumstances, trial, or feelings. God, your Father; Jesus, your Saviour; and the Holy Spirit, your Helper, is always with you.
I believe that every Christian will, at times, have feelings of loneliness. One thing that has to be understood from the beginning is that those feelings are not reality, they are feelings based on what we can see, hear, or feel in the physical realm. For the child of God, loneliness is a lie.
The writer of Hebrews quoted Jesus saying, emphatically, “I will never leave you nor forsake you” (Heb. 13:5). That’s the truth! If we believe the lie of loneliness, it will lead to discouragement, fear, bitterness, and possibly the loss of one’s faith in Christ. Believing the lie of loneliness is actually a sin. But if we believe the truth that Jesus is always with us, it will lead to victory, peace, joy, and spiritual endurance. It’s much better to believe the truth.
There was a time when Abraham felt alone. After waiting many years, he hadn’t yet seen the promise of a son come to pass, and his loneliness led to fear. God, knowing what Abraham was experiencing, came to him in a vision and said, “Fear not, Abram: I am your shield, and your exceeding great reward” (Gen. 15:1).
In essence, God was telling Abram (this was before his name was changed to Abraham) “Even though you haven’t received your promised son yet, I am with you! I am your shield and exceeding great reward.” God’s presence with Abram was more important than the blessing that God promised him. The same holds true for you. The blessings that God has given you or promised you are not what bring true fulfillment. What chases away all loneliness is you believing that God’s presence is continually with you, whether you feel Him or not.
There was a time when Moses felt alone. After 40 years in the desert, Moses had experienced the reconfirmation of God’s calling on his life (Ex. 3). He had seen the power of God manifested in delivering Israel out of Egypt (Ex. 4-12). He had seen God part the Red Sea for Israel to pass through on dry ground (Ex. 14). He had talked with God personally on Mount Sinai where God gave him the law and the revelation of the tabernacle (Ex. 20-31). Exodus 33:11 states, “So the Lord spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend.”
If anyone had no cause for loneliness, it would be Moses, especially after all that he had experienced in his life.
Yet immediately after talking with God “face to face, as a man speaks to his friend,” Moses said to God, “See, You say to me, Bring up this people: and You have not let me know whom You will send with me. Yet You have said, I know you by name, and you have also found grace in My sight. Now therefore, I pray, if I have found grace in Your sight, show me now Your way, that I may know You and that I may find grace in Your sight: and consider that this nation is Your people” (Ex. 33:12-13).
Moses’ words to God show us that we can have incredible encounters with God, have a very close walk with God, but still prone to leaning on our own understanding and feel alone. I’m thankful that He loves us and is patient with us. God’s response to Moses was, “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest” (Ex. 33:14). You can take that same word personally today. If you trust Him—even when your faith wavers—God says to you, “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest. I am with you.”
The ultimate reason why we don’t have to feel alone is because Jesus took our loneliness upon Himself at the Cross. He was forsaken by God briefly on the Cross (Matt. 27:46). He took upon Himself all of our sin, sicknesses—and loneliness—so that we could experience the continual presence of God in us and with us. Today, if you have been feeling alone, the truth is, you are not alone. Your heavenly Father is with you and in you; Jesus, your Savior, is with you and in you; and the Holy Spirit, your Helper, is with you and in you—always.
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