Promises for Seasons of Loneliness
I will never leave you nor forsake you....
In my life I've experienced extreme seasons of loneliness. One of the faithful culprits has been tied to my gifts. By the age of seven my gift of strong discernment and intercession began to manifest. Can you imagine being seven with a strong desire to pray for people and know EXACTLY what they needed prayer for? Now as you answer, keep in mind that I'm an African American southern girl born in 1977 which means I was supposed to be seen and not heard unless called on. Who could I talk to about the "feelings" (that's all I knew to call the gift) I felt or the things I knew? Certainly not the other seven year olds at school or the kids in my family! That would have made for super odd playground conversation and probably would've gotten me bullied more than I already was. Even as an adult the "unbeautiful" part of this beautiful gift, as well as the calling on and purpose of my life, has rendered loneliness at times. Trustworthy, safe conversation partners are not easy to come by and sometimes a mile in your shoes is the only way a person can really truly understand what you're talking about.
I wish that I could say that my only loneliness came from my giftings but honestly, I've had more seasons of loneliness than I care to recall. Some of the worse were my children going to college (pray for a Sista because they're leaving me with the #MacAttack ALONE LOL) failing relationships and death of loved ones who have really been pivotal parts of my development. As a matter of fact I could probably do all 30 days of this #CoveredGirlPromises challenge on loneliness but what has blessed me in my loneliest times has been Hebrews 13:5b For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” In my deepest state of loneliness I know I'm not alone because God is with me and because God is with me I can lean on God. With this wonderful revelation I discovered that I could be in God's presence and be satisfied with that as I prayed for the earthly presence of a friend. This promise helped me to know very deeply that God loved me with a consuming love that made God always available to me regardless of the time or place.
Today, I hope that promise resonates in your spirit. I hope that if this is a season of loneliness for you that this promise from our Creator God would breakthrough the isolating bubble and overwhelm you. If this isn't your season to feel alone I pray that you would tuck this away in your treasure chest that it may be available when you would have need of it. Finally, think of someone who you know that may need to hear this promise. Pray for them and then share this post (maybe even share a story of your life over coffee).
Let's pray:
Wonderful God we thank you for the strength and steadiness of Your Word. We're grateful that Your Word is Your character and Your nature and therefore You will uphold it. We're grateful that You love us so much that You've promised us Your uninterrupted presence and we pray that as we travel through seasons of loneliness that we'll remember we are never alone. Amen