The Art of the Lonely

Psalm 138:8 says, “The Lord will accomplish what concerns me; Your loving-kindness, O Lord, is everlasting; Do not forsake the works of Your hands.”

Graduating class of 2013. Super excited to be able to leave the house and head out to somewhere completely different. I can’t wait to go to say the least. I’m writing this post in my current mindset praying and asking that others dealing with the same issues would learn to love and experience the joy of glorifying God.

I’ve written on loneliness a little bit before and probably just talked about how it’s no fun but God is in control, but right now as I write this I’m in the midst of experiencing the deepest type of humanistic loneliness ever in my life. It’s not a shortage of friends to be honest, because I have some great friends right now, but it’s the absence of having someone besides me that loves me.

Can I be honest? It feels so insanely stupid to write about how much I want to be in a relationship with some girl. Being somewhat a man, it doesn’t feel good to express my deepest weakness, but God works in our weaknesses. I feel like this time in my life is a desert for several reasons. I leave for school in the fall, so when I say “this time” I mean the end of spring into summer.

In Galatians, Paul says that he spent sometime away after his conversion before going into the ministry. It’s so easy to understand that he needed to be prepared for the ministry that he was about to have. In that time, he was being trained by the Lord to be ready for stoning, hatred, denial, and other types of persecution. God also led Moses and Israel into the desert and wilderness before going into the Promise Land so that they could experience the goodness of who He was and so they could learn to rely only on Him.

That’s what this time in my life is. My Dad and I both believe that I’m only ready to get married when I am fully satisfied in Christ and look to Him alone for my worth. Now, that’s saying a lot, and really may not ever be completed in this lifetime. Might as well suit up now for single’s ministry, ay?

While helping teach a parenting class for teens, I was reminded that the end goal is not a girlfriend or marriage, but instead a closer love for God and just to be near Him throughout life. Right now, I’m learning that if I can’t be satisfied in God, than I’m not ready to pour into my wife all the things that she needs. I need to be completely secure in my Christian identity before having a completely effective ministry to my wife and even to others. So God bids me to rely solely on Him.

I ask for your prayers and also that you would rejoice in this time with me. God is drawing me closer to His heart, and even though it hurts like crazy, it’s going to be so worth it. We were created to glorify God in all that we do. I’m so ready to do that more and to praise Him with all that I am.

Maybe you’re finding yourself in a state of loneliness or even absence from the “Presence of God.” I’d love to remind you that the presence of God has not left you, but instead God chases you even while you are sleeping. He is with you day in night pursuing your heart and asking that you’d not only give him some room but complete clearance.

That’s what the lonely is for. –Forsake All