Loss and loneliness are ever present realities. While we close out this week’s study on these topics, they do not come to a close in our lives.
I experienced loss as a teenager. While the dark and oppressive cloud of sadness, fear, and despair has lifted, this has left scars that, from time to time, have affected my adult life.
I am also no stranger to loneliness. I remember being dropped off at a boarding school in Africa and the moment my family drove away, I was overcome with loneliness. As an introvert, making friends was and is hard, yet we all crave to be with people. We have a God-given desire to be known and loved, to feel valued, appreciated, and included.
Loneliness and loss can be a part of our lives for one season or for many. We don’t even have to look far in the Psalms to see its authors pour out their hearts of loneliness, fear, confusion and doubt. In Psalm 42 David admits to deep sorrow to the point where his tears are like his only source of food (vs. 3).
The Entrapment of Despair
From the moment sin entered the world through Adam and Eve, the experiences of loss and loneliness have been constant parts of the broken human experience. Loss of life, loss of a job or finances, loss of innocence and trust, loss of joy and comfort.
Loss and loneliness bring with them terrible feelings. They lure us to do things that are not good for us or are not glorifying to God. Many of us may indulge our feelings and we will wallow in sadness and despair, letting them zap us of our energy, self discipline, motivation, and care.
Others will go to great lengths to avoid being lonely or experiencing loss. Maybe it means never being without a boyfriend, or always having to be surrounded by people. Others will lie, or steal, or manipulate in order to have or to be well-liked.
The Freedom Of True Hope
But one of the lessons we learn from David is that he never allows himself to stay in the arms of despair. He always come back to the one truth that can set him – and us – free. Our hope is God! Always God!
Why are you cast down, O my soul,
and why are you in turmoil within me?
Hope in God;
Twice in Psalm 42 David preaches to his soul, telling it to hope in God.
His faith reasons with his fears, his hope argues with his sorrows. – C.H. Spurgeon
Why? Because while we can lose everything that is earthly, we can’t lose anything that is spiritual. Everything that is eternal is secure. We can’t lose our souls or our salvation because we can’t lose our God! Therefore His love for us and faithfulness towards us is rock solid. Since God is omnipresent, His kindness and His comfort surround us at all times. His compassion never wavers and His strength is there to uphold and carry us.
Brokenness brings loss and loneliness to all humans without exception. But those who call on the name of the Lord will find comfort and wisdom for today, and will find strength for tomorrow. Then we will praise the Lord and experience His divine joy.
Looking To Jesus,
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Today wraps up Week 1 of our Broken & Redeemed study! Grab your favorite beverage, crack open your Bible, and together let’s rejoice with the broken and redeemed of God.
You can grab a copy of our Broken & Redeemed journal on Amazon here or download it at this location.
We also have a corresponding kid’s Broken & Redeemed journal geared for children in elementary grades. You can grab a copy on Amazon at this location.
I lost my father when I was just 15 years old. This was a loss that shaped the next 15 years of my life. In my search for wholeness I covered up my loneliness and despair by drinking, partying, and running around with guys. I married at 17 and had both of my children by the time I was 21. Nothing to fill that place. I purchased stuff. Filled my home with things that made me feel good. It was lovely but again not taking away what I felt deep inside. My marriage ended and then I ended up with my current husband. He took me to church and it wasn’t long before my aching heart found Jesus. There was so much He needed to pull from my heart in order to feel whole but He worked on my slowly. All the while revealing to me the love of my Heavenly Father. He filled those places of loneliness and despair. He even placed good Godly men in my life through whom He worked powerfully to shape me into who I am today.
Now my father has been gone 25 years. I miss him but God has been true to His word….psalm 68:6 God sets the lonely in families, he leads out the prisoners with singing. He truly did that for me.
Remember what He does for one He do for others. If your struggling know that He wants to bring peace, wholeness and healing.
Sheila, my heart goes out to you. I just lost my dad 2 years ago and it is still very fresh. It is so encouraging to hear that through all the ups and downs, God was still faithful and brought you through the storm! Thank you for sharing your story on encouragement and your heart!
What a timely study God has allowed this to be …. one week ago today, my brother was in a very serious car accident. God miraculously orchestrated his rescue from the burning car moments before it exploded by civilian people who stopped to help & risk their own lives. He has since undergone 22 hrs of surgery to repair many broken bones. God has provided a devoted wife to be by his side along with other family members. At least hundreds of Believers have been praying for him – God has been so merciful. Please pray with us for God’s purposes to be fulfilled in his heart and life. Quite a road ahead for him. Thanking God for His life-giving Word and for the testimony & truth shared in the blogs this week. I have been able to share them with my brother’s wife ❤. (Jeff and Danielle are their names). Much strength and God’s leading and blessing upon the ministry of LGG.
Wendy…I will have Jeff and Danielle in my prayers. Isn’t it just amazing how the Lord works. It’s priceless for Danielle that you are able to share with her the comforting that the Lord provides to us during truly hard times. I will pray that both their hearts are softened towards what the Lord has in His plans for them. I will be praying for you that the Lord will lead you in the direction most needed for your family!!!
Father….touch this family…bring people to them that magnify Your Glory and Your miracles in our lives…and bless Wendy as she shares Your love and Your Word…open the windows of heaven and shower her with blessings she cannot contain…in Jesus Name…Amen and amen!!!!
https://www.facebook.com/selahmusic/videos/10154622606271713/
Keeping Jeff and Danielle in prayer ?? And praising God for all His helpers at the scene. Your faithfulness to them in their time of need is a great blessing I’m sure. Thank you for being with us this study.
Thank you so much for your blog today, Jen! Up until very recently I have been going through a season of allowing my emotions to get the better of me…and today has given me a new scripture to cling to! I have been allowing despair and restlessness to overtake me instead of focusing of God, finding my hope in Him, and praising Him for all the good He has done. God’s timing is always so perfect in bringing His word to my attention!
My husband went to heaven a little over two weeks ago and I am still grieving. I started this study shortly after his passing and it has been a great comfort to me. Yes, it came at just the right time. Yesterday’s post was especially comforting when the first post was about no more death, mourning or crying or pain…what an amazing promise to focus on when we are hurting….this pain is not forever! One day, our Savior will wipe the tears from our eyes, gloriously redeem what has been broken and make all things right.
My husband had been in pain for over eight years and it only continued to get worse. I miss him terribly but I am glad and comforted that he is no longer in pain.
Ernestine my sister…thank you for this inspiring post…and for sharing with me your grief and sorrow. Father…what a mighty God we serve…and we come thanking You that we can hold onto You even when our grip isn’t all that tight…but that’s ok…Yours always is…it’s a steadfast hold…that You said…NOTHING can pry us out of…surround Ernestine with Your Holy Spirit presence and lift her up as only You can do…in Jesus Name I stand believing it done…Jesus Jesus Jesus….Amen!!!
https://www.facebook.com/selahmusic/videos/10154622606271713/
Oh my sweet friend! I’m so very sorry for your loss. Jesus can bring comfort on those days where nothing earthly brings you peace, when no one else could possibly understand your pain or loss He brings peace to the pain. God gave us grieving as a way to process through our earthly losses.
When my father passed no one could comfort my pain. But years later my Jesus met me in it for the first time and I began to feel whole.
Father I bring Earnestine to you now. Father wraps her tightly in the arms of love and let her find a place of understanding and comfort. Lord you understand the loss of a loved one restore her soul to peace and comfort. Bring healing to her mourning heart. Saturate her in your healing balm of gilead. Take her hand and walk with her Lord. Father surround her with loving friends that will just “be” with her, listen, mourn with her and be a light in this moment. Father thank you for how your ministering to her through your word. In Jesus name. Amen
I wouldn’t say I’m feeling broken or lonely but have certainly battled feelings of despair. It is easy to do when I look around at others and get that feeling of want. But I remind myself that He provides me with my needs, not people and not the world. And I choose not to be bitter, yet grateful Thank you for this blog and our reminder of the hope we have in Him.
I, too, have been battling with feelings of despair lately, Monica. Some days I just want to stay in bed and under the covers…hiding from the world. But, then I get to read scriptures like today where David is TELLING his soul to STOP being in despair, to STOP being restless and to START hoping in God, to START praising God, and I remember that each day is a choice. I pray that God will continue to provide for your every need as you choose to keep your focus on Him.
Jen, I was the same as you dropped off at my boarding school in Harare Zimbabwe at age 10, only months after my father died playing tennis with me. I remember that searing pain inside and sobbing myself to sleep. Praise God that I am now His child and can cope through the hurt and loneliness ?
I read this on Saturday morning and it so reassured me. Love the music link! I had an unexpected loss late this week and was just feeling as though God just didn’t care anymore. I needed to read this to show me to continue to hope in God.
I have dealt with so much loss and the loneliness I deal with daily. Both my parents are gone. I also have a brother that is gone. I lost my brother and mom both last year to cancer. I just lost 2 of my senior pets one month apart. My husband travels for work and I usually only see him 5 days a month. It gets so lonely here at home. I talk to God daily. This is my first bible study and it is perfect for me. I invited a couple friends to do this bible study with me. Well, it’s time for more of Gods word. I’m off to church. Thank you Lord for being by my side forever and always.
Oh, I know that pain, dear sister in Christ. I lost my mom, dad, 8year old daughter and my 18 year marriage within three years. Then my church abandoned me as well. You are in my prayers this morning.
Oh Janet, that is so much to handle in such a short time. Sad to hear your church abandoned you with all the loss you had. God is with us through everything.
I know this is your study from last spring, and you may not even be monitoring these older studies closely. I’m going to write this and trust that the right people are going to see it and hear these words. I want to let you know that this study is still doing a mighty work. It’s an Easter study, and I started it six weeks before Christmas, but it is exactly what I need. I have experienced many different types of loss in my life. The loss of my parents 5 Christmases ago, job loss, financial loss, relationships lost…All of us have. I know this, and I do not pretend that my experiences are any worse than anyone’s else. I have learned that, no matter what is going on in someone’s life, no matter how small it might seem to us, it is big to them, so I should treat it as if it were and minister to that person as they need. Right now, we are going through what can unfortunately be defined as church hurt. My husband and I had to choose between our church ministry and our foster care ministry, and there’s a lot more to that story, but he resigned from his pastoral position three months ago. We’ve been watching God work in our lives, but He has not yet provided employment for my husband. We had to move because we lived in a parsonage, which was hard, especially on our children. Two of our precious foster children were reunified with extended family, an answer to prayer in many ways, but a loss for us at the same time. We are hurt by things that have been said and done to us by the church we left, yet we are encouraged by the joy of being ministered to by the believers in the church where we are temporarily resting. Yet, as I say resting, I can tell you that resting for long is not the way we are designed, but I know this is our season to rest, to heal, to be ministered to rather than to minister. It’s humbling. My heart hurts for so many reasons, and I’ve been telling my husband and closest friends for several weeks now, “I feel broken. I don’t know how to put myself back together.” The Lord led me back to LGG last week. Sometimes, I need a season where I’m just absorbing the Word of God without a study, and for a while I was doing a Beth Moore study with our Sunday School class, but I always seem to return to your site. You offer simplicity and depth simultaneously. As I perused your study titles, I knew right away that God led me back to you and to this particular study. It is exactly what I need right now. My husband is actually doing the study as well. Your ministry is so valuable, friends. You are blessing new believers, seekers, and even pastor’s wives by providing a simple format where we can all come together and read and study the Word of God. Thank you for being here. I know what you do takes a lot of time and is no small feat to organize and create. You do it well, and you do it with passion. God sees you and knows how hard you are working, and I can only imagine the spiritual attacks you face because of this great work. I am praying for you as I know you pray over each of us who is engaging in these studies. Blessings to you all!
Kendra
Wow, this is awesome, I’ve just had such a hard year, My Dad had some cancer removed, My best friend lied manipulated me and our friends, she sowed lies and mental abuse into our friendships and left us to pick up the peaces. And iv found my self as an extrovert not wanting to leave the house not wanting to work out and just knowing that I need to face this head on but feel like my trust had been so broken. these readings are great and so helpful. I’m also dyslexic and I’m finding them very easy to read and the videos are helpful too. Much love xxx