Feeling alone

“I'm about to lose this freedom. I've got to go back to school, right? And mom and dad are thinking, I'm about to gain some freedom. They're going back to school. But then there's fall, a reflective season. And then there's winter, a season when things are brown and when the trees are barren of leaves, and when the days get shorter and darker, and we struggle with the”

“television screen preaching. And it was like God sent my pastor to make a hospital visit in a moment of need. It was a moment of providence. It wasn't an accident. But it was God saying to me, you may feel lonely, but you're not alone. I'm here. I'm with you. And that's just one instance. And it was a very serious instance in my life. Yes, I did manage to go along and to make a recovery. And thank God all of that”

“the vulnerable. They go after the weak. And I'm telling you, when you are lonely, you are prime target for Satan to come in and to devour your life. That's why that the answer is not to become devoured by your vulnerability, but to find a way to get connected to community. You cannot enter a doorway on any of our Warren campuses without seeing a medallion. And in that medallion, there are four words. It simply says worship, connect, equip, and send. These are the”

“to hear and to look to him. David had to deal with this in his life. David in Psalm 25, 16 said, turn to me and be gracious to me for I'm lonely and afflicted. The troubles of my heart are in large. Bring me out of my distress. He wrote again in Psalm 102, verse six, I'm like a desert owl of the wilderness, like an owl of the waste places. I lie awake. I am like a lonely sparrow”

“but who gave expression to it. Listen to a couple of these psalms. I just want you to know them. I want you to be aware of them. Psalm 25, 16, David said, turn to me and be gracious to me for I am, what's the word? I'm lonely and afflicted. The troubles of my heart have enlarged, bring me out of my distresses. Listen to Psalm 142 and verse 4, look to the right and see”

“Paul knew that he still needed to take care of his body. And you know, when we get lonely, we tend to just quit taking care of ourselves. We quit caring. And you need to care for your body. You need to get sleep. You need to eat. You need to do all those things. And for the rest of us who maybe are thinking, well, I'm sure not lonely. I wish he'd finished this sermon. But for the rest of us, you know people that are lonely and they need you to care for them.”

“book sitting on my counter and just looking so lonely. And I'm just like, oh man, I did have this book, didn't I? And I'm just so bad at finishing books. For some reason, like I will start, I have so many books in my room where if you ask me, how many books have you started? I'll say, oh, I can number them. I mean, I've started endless amounts of books. But then if you ask me, how much have you finished. That's another story. But here's the thing. The good thing is God is not like me.”

“life. And you need that and I need that because we're never more vulnerable than when we are isolated. That's why Peter wrote in First Peter 5 and verse 8, "Be sober minded. Be watchful. Your adversary, the devil, prowls like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour." Have you ever watched a documentary on lions? Who do the lions go after? They go after the isolated. They go after the vulnerable. They go after the weak. And I'm telling you, when you are lonely, you are prime”

“and it's that disconnectedness that so often becomes something that causes us to become very self-depreciating and causes us to feel the isolation. David, I mentioned him earlier in the Psalms said it this way in Psalm 102 verse 6, I am like a desert owl of the wilderness, like an owl of the waste places. I lie awake. I am like a lonely sparrow on a housetop. I'm like that one”

“I am like a desert owl of the wilderness, like an owl of the waste places. I lie awake. I am like a lonely sparrow on a housetop. I'm like that one little insignificant bird just up there. And that's all that I am. And I can't help but wonder if when Jesus was speaking to his followers and he chose to use the same little icon, the sparrow,”

“it's because of what Christ has done that we can have a relationship with God and that we can know that we are never, never, never alone. So I don't know what you're facing today, but I want you to know there's one, one who is with you and one who loves you. You may today be feeling forgotten, ignored, misunderstood, overwhelmed, but I'm here to tell you today, feel lonely, but you're never alone.”

“your loving kindness has welcomed me. Though I'm unworthy of majesty, you wrap the lonely in royalty. and I will lay my crowns down at your feet.”

“remove wrinkles and increase energy amen I'm up for that one but I'm telling you when life is changing when life is bringing disappointment When future is unsure, we struggle with those issues that can lead to loneliness. But now let's go to the last question and the one that I'm most eager to get us to, and that is, what should I do when I feel lonely? What should I do when I feel lonely? It's not a sin to feel lonely.”

“and they become a friendly face and a gift that can be given. And we do this in a lot of different ways. It doesn't just have to be that, but I'm saying that to say, if you know somebody who's lonely, look for a care point and meet a physical need. Number three, not only do we need to take time to connect with the church and care for physical needs, but we have to concentrate on personal growth. Loneliness leads you feeling barren.”

“Satan looks for people that are isolated, and he comes. That's why so many people allow loneliness to become depressive, loneliness to become an excuse for indulgence in their life. All of these things can happen to us. So what did Paul do? What do we need to do when we're lonely? Number one, you need to connect with God's church. I'm not talking about the building. I'm not talking about programs. I'm not talking about activities. Who is the church?”

“and you guys may do it here. I'm not absolutely sure how this translates campus to campus. But we have a group of deacons who every Wednesday night take some of the meals that we prepare on the Augusta campus and take them to shut-ins in our community every week all over the county and I just love the fact that they go and knock on the door and they become a friendly face and a gift that can be given and we do this in a lot of different ways it doesn't just have to be that but I'm saying that to say if you know somebody who's lonely look for a care point and meet a”

“and helping people to grow in community and to build community, I'm hearing everywhere, I'm seeing everywhere around me over and over this message, we are living in a lonely world. People are lonely, people are desperate and loneliness is one of the defining struggles of our generation. Reports have shown that as many as one in five Americans experiences loneliness on a daily basis.”

“And all of these things were happening and I'm trying to deal with the emotional reality of all of that and I'm trying to live through these things and walk through this. And then I've got a staff member and another church member that are in a conflict and it was an issue that as wonderful as our people were, There was tension going on that I'm trying to resolve and to deal with and not let it become an issue to bring breakdown in the church. And then all of a sudden, that yellow lab, Lily, I don't know if she just grieved herself or what it was, but she had a neurological event and we had to see her put down as well.”

“all of these things can happen to us so what did paul do what do we need to do when we're lonely number one you need to connect with god's church i'm not talking about the building i'm not talking about programs I'm not talking about activities who is the church we are the church so when I say connect with God's church I'm talking about people we need to connect with God's people”

“Thanksgiving, and I've lived through all these things I'm telling you, and I'm laying in a hospital bed knowing that I'm not going home for Thanksgiving and trying to figure out what in the world is going on in my life. And I have to be honest, there have been many times, but I really felt alone. And I will never forget 4 a.m. sitting there contemplating all that was happening. God, What are you doing in my life? Lord, why have you forsaken me?”

“You don't have a food service here, but I'm saying the thing that we need to do is that we realize that loneliness is a vulnerability. therefore, let's find a practical means of touching a life. And then there was a third thing that Paul did, and that is that he concentrated on personal growth. How do I know this? He said, when you come, bring the cloak. And then he said, also the books and especially the parchments. I don't know what the books were, but there were some books that”

“They didn't have electronic Bibles like the one I'm holding here that you can just touch a text and go from one to the other. No, they had these scrolls and they were precious. But Paul said, I need to read. I need to be listening. I need to be focusing my mind and my attention because when you're lonely and struggling, it's easy for you to give your life to nothing more than death scrolling in social media instead of spiritually engaging with the word of God.”

“basis, I am finding that again and again and again, I'm meeting this issue of loneliness and the reality of loneliness. And as a pastor, that is a very disturbing concern for me because my whole life is about connectedness. My whole life is about shepherding and gathering and caring for the people of God. And yet, everywhere I turn and everywhere I look, I am finding that loneliness is being identified as one of the defining struggles of our generation. And strangely,”

“everywhere I'm seeing everywhere around me over and over this message. We are living in a lonely world. People are lonely. People are desperate. And loneliness is one of the defining struggles of our generation. Reports have shown that as many as one in five Americans experiences loneliness on a daily basis. The US Surgeon General two years ago reported that half of US adults are experiencing measurable loneliness and chronic social isolation.”

“fantastic time of travel and Bible study together. And while I'm in that neighborhood, let me say that I am now planning and preparing to take a trip to Israel next year during Master's Week, spring break, and I would love to have the privilege of taking you. I'm just making you aware of that. I will tell you that the trip is costly. You might imagine that. And secondly, there's always volatility. But this isn't something we just up and do. You have to plan for it. So”