|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and afflicted (Psalm 25:16, NASB1995).
A prison once stood on the banks of the Neva River that flows through St. Petersburg, Russia. It held mostly political prisoners.
If you were sentenced and entered this prison, the guards would turn their backs as you passed by, and you would be told, “No one will ever speak to you again, and no one will mention your name. You no longer exist.”
Have we ever felt lonely? Have we experienced severe loneliness? No one speaks to us, people turn their backs, and we feel like a nobody.
Severe loneliness can result from our actions or the decisions of others. We even find ourselves lonely in a crowded room, and we don’t understand why.
We’ve lost our identity and purpose. Few speak to us, no one seems to care.
It’s common today. We may not be cast into the prison of the Peter and Paul Fortress in St. Petersburg, Russia, but many of us know what it’s like to spend a night or two in its dungeon.
What can we do? The Apostle Paul experienced severe loneliness. Let’s learn from him.
First, Jesus is standing next to us.
Paul writes…
The first time I was put on trial, no one came to help me. Everyone deserted me. I hope they will be forgiven for it (2 Timothy 4:16, NIRV).
But Paul also says…
The Lord stood at my side. He gave me the strength to preach the whole message (2 Timothy 4:17).
In our severe loneliness, Jesus is right next to us!
Second, we experience grace.
Paul writes…
But [Jesus] said to me, “My grace is all you need. My power is strongest when you are weak” (2 Corinthians 12:9).
The apostle Paul was sick. Pain and recovery can be a place of severe loneliness. But in our illness and depression, we experience sufficient grace.
Jesus says in Hebrews 13:5b, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”
Third, we begin to boast!
If I must boast, I would rather boast about the things that show how weak I am (2 Corinthians 11:30, NLT).
Boasting about loneliness—that’s crazy!
In 2 Corinthians 11:16-29, Paul describes the trials he endured as an apostle. He describes beatings, shipwrecks, imprisonment, false witnesses, and spending a night and day alone while drifting in the sea after a shipwreck.
Yet, His conclusion was to boast about the goodness of God.
As the Scriptures say, “If you want to boast, boast only about the Lord” (2 Corinthians 10:17).
There are many causes of severe loneliness. We may not understand our loneliness, but through grace, we can draw close to Jesus. And there we find open arms.
Through the Presence of God, abundant grace, and boasting praise, we find freedom—even in prisons.