you probably feel like you're the only one, but you're not... you never are...
Isolation. You've probably felt it before, haven't you? I bet there's been one or two...hundred... times in your life that you thought you were the only one. The only one who had a broken heart. The only who whose marriage was falling apart at the seams. The only one whose life plans were not panning out accordingly. I bet you've thought you were the only one dealing with that addiction, or the only one with such a tainted past. I bet there have been times when you thought you were the only one who had financial problems, struggled with depression, or felt like you were worthless. Maybe you've thought you were the only parent who couldn't seem to find enough patience to get you through another day, or you were the only spouse who seemed to keep falling short of your preconceived expectations. Maybe you've believed that you were the only one stuck in that particular sin, the only one who had gone through that certain traumatic circumstance, or the only one who suffered from that wretched ailment. And even though you may feel alone, like no one could ever understand or even begin to relate, the truth is that you're not alone. You never are.
I had one of those moments this week. I felt like I was the only one. Day 1 of our Mission Trip, I got bit by an ant and it was downhill from there. By Tuesday night, my foot could hardly fit into my shoe and it hurt to walk. Aaron took me to the ER, and I hoped it would be an easy fix. Much to my dismay, the doctor told me it would be swollen for a while and I needed to stay off my feet to ensure the developing infection didn't get worse. I laid alone, in the dark, on my half-inflated air mattress the next morning as the rest of the group headed out to continue working for the day. I felt sorry for myself. Completely sorry and totally left out. I thought, "Why is it that I am always the one who gets hurt? Why do these weird things happen to me?" It was quiet... too quiet. No TV, no radio. There wasn't a window in the room, and the light was all the way on the other side. I tried to stand up, which hurt even more, and as I crawled across the room to turn the lights on, I realized that everything I needed for the day was downstairs. All alone, in the quiet, and I was really discouraged about the way things were going for me.
An hour later, I heard a voice. The "house mom" had shown up to clean the place we were staying. She found me lying in the corner, and she said, "Honey, I'm going to make you a sandwich. You just rest right there and I'll be back in a bit with your food." She came back with quite the spread. She sat down and told me about how she, too, had been bitten and had the same type of reaction. She took a look at my elephant foot and said, "Yep, that's exactly what mine looked like. That's normal. Let me go get you some more pillows so you can prop it up and be more comfortable." She then proceeded to stop back by with some cake made from her grandmother's special recipe and visited with me a bit about her life. She got ready to leave and said, "Sugar, I got the showers all clean. You should head down there now and take one before the group gets back! Here's my number. You call me if you need anything." And as I limped down the stairs to the shower, tears filled my eyes as I thanked the Lord for sending me someone so that I wouldn't be alone that day. Someone who understood.
Elijah felt the same way. Complete isolation. The only one. After telling the Lord all of his troubles, he said, "I am the only one left...". (1 Kings 19:18) He was to the point where he was ready and willing to die. His situation seemed so dire that he didn't want to live anymore. He felt that he was alone. The only one. It's a hard place to be. A scary and lonely circumstance. But God said, "I reserve seven thousand in Israel...". (1 Kings 19:18) In other words, Elijah wasn't alone. Not only did He have the presence of God accompanying him wherever he went, there were others, too. Others just like him. Others that were refusing to bow to Baal and were choosing to serve God. Elijah wasn't the only one. No, he was one of many.
You are, too. You're not the only one, you're one of many. One of many who is loved by a "High Priest who understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin. So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most." (Hebrews 4:15-16) Alone, you're not alone. You never are.
I had one of those moments this week. I felt like I was the only one. Day 1 of our Mission Trip, I got bit by an ant and it was downhill from there. By Tuesday night, my foot could hardly fit into my shoe and it hurt to walk. Aaron took me to the ER, and I hoped it would be an easy fix. Much to my dismay, the doctor told me it would be swollen for a while and I needed to stay off my feet to ensure the developing infection didn't get worse. I laid alone, in the dark, on my half-inflated air mattress the next morning as the rest of the group headed out to continue working for the day. I felt sorry for myself. Completely sorry and totally left out. I thought, "Why is it that I am always the one who gets hurt? Why do these weird things happen to me?" It was quiet... too quiet. No TV, no radio. There wasn't a window in the room, and the light was all the way on the other side. I tried to stand up, which hurt even more, and as I crawled across the room to turn the lights on, I realized that everything I needed for the day was downstairs. All alone, in the quiet, and I was really discouraged about the way things were going for me.
An hour later, I heard a voice. The "house mom" had shown up to clean the place we were staying. She found me lying in the corner, and she said, "Honey, I'm going to make you a sandwich. You just rest right there and I'll be back in a bit with your food." She came back with quite the spread. She sat down and told me about how she, too, had been bitten and had the same type of reaction. She took a look at my elephant foot and said, "Yep, that's exactly what mine looked like. That's normal. Let me go get you some more pillows so you can prop it up and be more comfortable." She then proceeded to stop back by with some cake made from her grandmother's special recipe and visited with me a bit about her life. She got ready to leave and said, "Sugar, I got the showers all clean. You should head down there now and take one before the group gets back! Here's my number. You call me if you need anything." And as I limped down the stairs to the shower, tears filled my eyes as I thanked the Lord for sending me someone so that I wouldn't be alone that day. Someone who understood.
Elijah felt the same way. Complete isolation. The only one. After telling the Lord all of his troubles, he said, "I am the only one left...". (1 Kings 19:18) He was to the point where he was ready and willing to die. His situation seemed so dire that he didn't want to live anymore. He felt that he was alone. The only one. It's a hard place to be. A scary and lonely circumstance. But God said, "I reserve seven thousand in Israel...". (1 Kings 19:18) In other words, Elijah wasn't alone. Not only did He have the presence of God accompanying him wherever he went, there were others, too. Others just like him. Others that were refusing to bow to Baal and were choosing to serve God. Elijah wasn't the only one. No, he was one of many.
You are, too. You're not the only one, you're one of many. One of many who is loved by a "High Priest who understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin. So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most." (Hebrews 4:15-16) Alone, you're not alone. You never are.
Comments
Post a Comment