“Someone has said that the word loneliness was created to express the pain of being alone. The word solitude was created to express the glory of being alone.” -Angela Thomas, Do You Know Who I Am? (pg. 112)
I
don’t know about you, but I can relate to this description.
There
are times I feel lonely—like a huge emptiness has taken up residence inside my
heart. It doesn’t matter how many people are around me or who I am with, I feel
like I’m by myself in a great big world.
Other
times, I crave some alone time—time to be by myself to regroup and reenergize.
The time by myself helps me to be a better person—better equipped emotionally,
spiritually, and even physically to deal with what comes my way.
Being
alone and feeling lonely are very different, and yet both can bring us closer
to God. He can and will use both, alone time and feeling lonely, to draw us
into an intimate and personal relationship with Him.
I
know this, and yet I’m not always there with Him. So, I’m turning to Scripture
to remind myself. Will you join me?
God
promises He will always be with us…
I can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your presence! If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the grave, you are there. If I ride the wings of the morning, if I dwell by the farthest oceans, even there your hand will guide me, and your strength will support me. Psalm 139:7-10 NLT
He
promises He will not leave us…
What’s more, I am with you, and I will protect you wherever you go. One day I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have finished giving you everything I have promised you. Genesis 28:15 NLT
And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age. Matthew 28:20b NLT
He
desires to spend time with us…
For the Lord your God is living among you. He is a mighty savior. He will take delight in you with gladness. With his love, he will calm all your fears He will rejoice over you with joyful songs. Zephaniah 3:17 NLT
And He wants us to spend time alone with Him…
Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. Mark 1:35 NLT
He comforts us when we are alone…
The LORD is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those whose spirits are crushed. Psalm 34:18 NLT
And
He hears and answers us when we call out to Him…
But in my distress I cried out to the Lord; yes, I prayed to my God for help.He heard me from his sanctuary; my cry to him reached his ears. Psalm 18:6 NLT
Our
Lord is everything we need…
Why am I discouraged?
Why is my heart so sad?Psalm 43:4-5 NLT
I will put my hope in God!
I will praise him again—
my Savior and my God!
Will
you share a Scripture verse that reminds you of how much God loves and cares
for us?
We’re in Chapter 7 this week “Do You
Know I Am Lonely?...He Is Here” of Do You Know Who I Am? by
Angela Thomas. Whether you’re reading the book or not, I thank you for joining
me here today and hope you’ll stop by again.
In
Christ,
Laura
I'm happy to be linking up with Grace Cafe, Walk with Him Wednesdays, Thought Provoking Thursday, and Faith Filled Friday.
One of my favs..."And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God." Ephesians 3: 18 - 19
ReplyDeleteHappy to be visiting with you from Faith Filled Friday. Thanks for the encouraging post and scripture references! I'm an Angela Thomas fan, too:) Her books have been such a blessing to me!
Thanks Becky, so glad you stopped by!
Deletebeautiful post and very encouraging scriptures! Some of my favorites! stopping by from Faith Filled Friday Blessings~
ReplyDeleteThanks Danise, God bless!
DeleteQuote: "God promises He will always be with us…
ReplyDeleteI can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your presence! If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the grave, you are there. If I ride the wings of the morning, if I dwell by the farthest oceans, even there your hand will guide me, and your strength will support me." Psalm 139:7-10 NLT
Amen
This is another soul stirring post... the Lord has really encouraged me through your writings this week Laura. I have released so many pent up emotions reading your last two posts and have re-visited them both a number of times in order to soak up God's Word and pray.
Thank you (and all glory to God)
Amen Wendy! I give all the glory to God!
DeleteI struggled with this post and worked on it for days (which is why I posted it later than I'd hoped). I kept asking God what He wanted me to write, I wrote it the best I could, and I prayed it was what He wanted.
I know He can and will use anything to reach one of His children. Thank you for letting me see a glimpse of how He used this post. I am touched and blessed by your kind and encouraging words.
In His Name,
Laura
The Lord's timing is perfect Laura... one day I may be able to share what's been on my heart for so long, but for now I must wait upon God. I have a feeling He is writing an amazing story out of a tragic situation. Please pray that both my husband and I will remain strong and that God will be the lifter of our heads.
ReplyDeleteThank you Laura.
My prayers are with you and your husband.
DeleteGod bless,
Laura
Hi Laura:
ReplyDeleteI really like the verse you quoted from Mark 1:35. If Jesus, the very Son of God needed to spend time alone with His Father, how much more so do we?
It is comforting to know that we are truly never alone - God is with us through thick and thin.
Blessings,
Joan
Hi Joan, I thought the same thing. We need time alone with the Father. And we should note also that Jesus put His time with His Father before everything else. He went off to pray "very early in the morning, while it was still dark." I want to follow His example, but I can't say I do a good job of it.
DeleteThanks for your visit and comment!
God bless,
Laura