You Are Not Alone!

YOU ARE NOT ALONE

Though it’s supposed to be a time for giving thanks and a time of joy, this is also the time when seasonal depression seems to hit home for many. It’s supposed to be a time for family, love, getting together, sharing laughter, food, being thankful, and football games. After Thanksgiving comes the beginning of the holiday season. For most, this is a time of joy for families.

Unfortunately for some, it is also time for seasonal depression, a reminder of lost ones, a feeling of loneliness, an awkward feeling of being an outsider looking into someone else’s happiness only to be reminded how alone they are in this world. This time of year has by far the highest suicide rate.

It is to those individuals, who are feeling alone, that I dedicate this blog to. To those who are feeling hopeless, feeling without direction, or not good enough to feel worthy. Those who feel forgotten, abandoned by family members, unworthy of being loved because of things you may have said and done or not said and done.

When I first got divorced, the holidays became a time of hardship, loneliness, and it was compounded with a feeling of failure, it was very easy for me to feel sorry for myself. Alone during the holidays, I had absolutely no desire to hear about how great my friends’ holidays were or what wonderful plans they had. My parents have passed away, my family a thousand miles away, and I unable to travel due to financial reasons. I was going to be alone and I certainly didn’t want to hear them complain about how they had to entertain their families, or have to put up with a crazy brother or mother-in-law. I felt very alone, sad and all I wanted to do was crawl back into bed and forget about the holidays. Boy, it was far easier to hide away in my room then fake being happy in front of friends or co-workers.

But let me tell you what has changed in my life. During that time of feeling sorry for myself, I felt I had let my boys down. I was divorced. Now what? I didn’t feel I belonged at any church, especially when I’d hear the sermons about how divorce was wrong. So you can imagine, all I could think of was how bad a person I was for divorcing. I had no church to go to since I was feeling unworthy of God ever loving me because I want to get remarried someday. Totally bummed out about how I felt about myself, I was expected to cheerfully get through the holidays. In the famous words of Ebenezer Scrooge, “Bah humbug!” along with a few other choice words that came to mind.

That was 13 years ago, fast forward to today. Since then, I asked God for forgiveness of my sins, every day I grow in my relationship with God. Because I have grown in my relationship with God, I no longer feel alone. I am thankful for His mercy, His abundant grace, and that He loves me. But on my journey into a closer relationship with God, many times I failed to be the example God has wanted me to be. Each time I stumbled, I would beat myself up, sometimes give up because I felt I was not good enough for anyone but most of all God. But through it all, I found myself reaching out to God asking for forgiveness then starting all over again. Realizing that God loves me more than the mistakes I have made and through the blood of Jesus Christ, I am forgiven for my sins both seen and unseen. Jesus is my Savior!

We go through seasons in our lives that make or break us. It may be the loss of a family member, divorce or financial ruin. Whatever the season, God is there to get us through. Most likely to help us grow into a better person, maybe there is a lesson to be learned. As we go through life’s challenges and we find ourselves doing them alone it is a time many feel despair. And we have to remember.

Deuteronomy 4:29 NIV

“But if from there you seek the Lord your God, you will find him if you look for him with all your heart and all your soul.”

The more I seek guidance in God’s word and in prayer the easier my life has become. The more I trust God, the more my life is relieved from everyday stress. He has placed me in very uncomfortable places, some I put myself in and others have me thinking, God are you kidding me? But I see life’s challenges as God’s way of thumping me on the head as He waited lovingly for me to acknowledge Him. Trials I have been through in my life I now see as life lessons teaching me to be strong in my beliefs, and dependent on my God. You are not alone, you are loved, and you are worthy. “seek the Lord your God…..with all your heart and all your soul” He is there waiting to love you back, waiting for you to put your trust in Him. Waiting for you to let go and let God.

Psalm 14:2 NIV

“The Lord looks down from heaven on the sons of men to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God.”

God is looking down at everyone and waits for us to seek him. He delights in those who trust in Him. He wants us all to understand his power, and love for us. So he waits for us to reach up to Him. YOU ARE LOVED! YOU ARE NOT ALONE! All you have to do is invite Jesus into your life.

Acts 17:27 NIV

“God did this so men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each of us.”

God has a purpose for us, He made us in his own image, as children of God. We belong to Him and He loves us like a father. Though you may feel alone you are never alone. Give it to God, talk to him, and ask him to guide you in ways that are pleasing to him. You will begin to see a change in your attitude and way of life. God is love and when we love we want to do things that are pleasing to others. That’s when God is at His best. When you begin to trust God in all that you do, you will begin the see the work he is doing in your life and the purpose and love God has planned for you.

Heavenly Father, I ask that you guide me in ways that are pleasing to you. Help me to recognize the importance of my relationship to you. Help me to remember that when I am feeling alone and saddled with feelings of unworthiness, anxiety, or hopelessness, you are there. I am not alone. Keep me safe from hurt, harm or danger. I ask forgiveness of my sins both known and unknown. Help me understand so I seek you in all that I say and do. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.

BE BLESS,

MIN. Joanne Ives