Dear downhearted,
I understand how you feel. I have dealt with loneliness much of my life. Even in the midst of friends and family, we can feel misunderstood, ignored, unknown, and even unloved. Sometimes we look at others and wish we had the friends and family they have; behind the veil though, they deal with these same issues at times.
Did you know that Christ Himself dealt with loneliness? In Isaiah 53:3 we read, “He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.” Imagine that. The Lord of all the universe, full of infinite love and compassion for His people, despised. He was rejected. He was held in low esteem – a nobody that people couldn’t care less about. And yet these things did not define Him. While people rejected Him, He knew who He was.
Do you know who you are? If you are in Christ, you are a precious child of God, one whom the Lord of the heavens would do anything – anything – to have communion with. You are known, understood, precious, and dearly loved by God (See John 3:16, Romans 8:37-39). Do you really believe that? I know there are times when I struggle to own this truth. I may acknowledge it, but I don’t really make my union with Christ my identity.
I encourage you at this time to look beyond the brokenness of this world and past the human relationships that at their best pale in comparison to communion with our Savior. I pray that you will find all your identity in Christ. No matter how good our relationships are in this world, they fail in light of the love of God. I pray that this fundamental Gospel truth – that you are dearly loved and fully known – would pass from mere assent to heartfelt conviction. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 13:12, “For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.” You may have but a glimpse of the love of God for you; you will one day know this fully, just as your God knows you fully, even now. You are dearly loved and fully known.
Yours in Christ,
Citylight Member
P.S. I would encourage you to pick up a small book by John Owen called “Communion with God.” Get the version by Puritan Paperbacks. Read it. Meditate on it. And know that while loneliness is at its core a human condition, intimacy and communion with our Lord is both now and forever our truth and the meaning of our lives.