Presenting ...
... a weekly letter of encouragement.
9 October, 1996 - Singapore
Good Morning!
LONELINESS AND ISOLATION: Two maladies of our time.
Perhaps we have brought them upon ourselves by putting
success and the acquisition of things above relationships with
our family and friends.
Part of the blame may also have to do with the garage door
opener: With it we can zip into our "fortress"
without facing the neighbors!
We could also point the finger at T. V. and air conditioning:
Both serve to isolate us in that box we call "home."
Henry Ford may also share some of the blame: With the
automobile came urbanization and the loss of community. Who today,
for example stands around at the post office jawing over the height
of the summer corn or how the local baseball team is faring?
Jesus Christ, having gone to the cross alone, knows all about
LONELINESS AND ISOLATION.
And if you are His serious follower, you also are no stranger
to LONELINESS AND ISOLATION as you walk the near-vacant,
thinning path of the pilgrim.
As Christ's pilgrim, you can identify with the cry of the Psalmist,
"I lie awake. I have become like a lonely bird on a housetop."
(Psalm 102:7)
How then are we to deal with these twin maladies of LONELINESS
AND ISOLATION? Well, we can either view them as conditions
that are debilitating and paralyzing, or we can choose to allow
God to use them as influences that drive us toward intimacy
with the Lord Jesus. Often, it is in our anguished LONELINESS
AND ISOLATION that we find true spiritual depth in God. Can
we cry out with William T. Sleeper:
"Out of my bondage, sorrow and night, Jesus, I come...Into
Thy freedom, gladness and light, Jesus I come...Out of
my sickness into Thy health, out of my want and into Thy wealth.
Out of my sin and into Thyself, Jesus I come to Thee..."
Jesus, reassures us amidst our LONELINESS AND ISOLATION:
"...I will not in any way fail you nor give you up
nor leave you without support. [I will] not, [I will] not, [I
will] not in any degree leave you helpless nor forsake nor let
[you] down (relax My hold on you).! [Assuredly not!]" (Hebrews
13:5b - Amplified)
My prayer is that you are having a great week!
Dwight Hill
© Copyright 1996 Dwight Hill. Unlimited permission to copy or use is hereby granted subject to inclusion of this copyright notice.
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