Scripture
Our verse for today comes from John 16:32, “Indeed the hour is coming, yes, has now come, that you will be scattered, each to his own, and will leave Me alone. And yet I am not alone, because the Father is with Me.”
Background
All alone. That’s such a phrase of seeming contradiction. It first speaks of inclusion and togetherness and a collection of a group. But then it’s solitary and detached and isolated. When uttered, we intend to express just how alone and by ourselves we really are. Sometimes it’s a good thing, and sometimes it’s not. Many times we seek it out, and other times it’s an unwelcomed happenstance. But if you knew you were about to experience the most trying of circumstances you would ever encounter, literally walking to your death without anyone to lend support, that aloneness would be indescribable. Many of us know more and more people who have had their aloneness thrust upon them, some anticipated and some less so. The end of a life or the deterioration of a mind can separate where a union had been for many decades. And then there is the aloneness that some experience even when surrounded by people, even the people they might live with. Relatives or crowds cannot fix the emptiness that engulfs them. To be sure, each situation is different. And no formula exists that can eradicate the aloneness through a prescribed process.
Application
But when Jesus was alone, He was far from being by Himself. And though His relationship with God the Father was unique, that same love and availability exists for you, me, and the one who finds herself suddenly alone. It was enough to get Jesus to and through the cross, so we know it’s real and it’s powerful. It also makes itself evident in an array of possibilities and expressions. God’s Word offers comfort and hope, prayer provides a way to unload the burdens and experience calming peace, and God’s people can step in and help at just the right time. But if we’re going to step in, we need to be in regular contact with the One who can direct our good intentions. Your alone time with God affects your time with those who are just alone. All alone. Stay close to the One so you can be there for another.
Charge
As we seek Him today, get closer to the Father in case He wants you to be close for someone else.
Rich Holt / Originally Published on : BCWorldview.org
Also published on : Medium.com.
