Never Alone The Edgefield Advertiser – Edgefieldadvertiser

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By Sigrid Fowler

Loneliness isaproblem today, here in the US andaroundthe world.Somepercentagesfrom one surveyare revealing:The number of people who said they felt lonelyoften, always, or some of the timevaried by country.Brazil 50%,Turkey 46%,India 43%,Saudi Arabia 43%,Italy 41%, South Africa 40%, Malaysia39%, Chile 38%, South Korea 38%,Peru37%,France 36%,Argentina 35%, Great Britain34%, Mexico34%, Canada 31%,United States 31%,Australia 30%, Singapore30%(https://socialself.com/loneliness-statistics/#1).Many causes aresuggested,pandemic isolationespecially.AnNPR title from January 23, 2020, suggests another: Most Americans Are Lonely, And Our Workplace Culture May Not Be Helping.Changing jobs or schools, moves, and work from homeare also noted(https://www.healthline.com/health/mental-health/chronic-loneliness#causes).As Christians,what do we say? DoesScripturehelp?

The text that comes to mind is a promise of Jesus: Be sure of this, I am with you always, even to the end of the age (Matt 28: 20b NLT).The words comprise the last half of thefinal line of the Gospel of Matthew. They arestriking and emphatic. The other three gospels end in various ways; only Matthew chooses these particular words of Jesusas his conclusion.We can note several things about the promise.

First, Jesus lays out a time frame:even to the end of the age.In this way,he brings us all in, not just the disciples living at the timehespoke these words.A promise covering all time is a weighty assurance indeedall-inclusive, offered toall personswho by faithseethemselves among Jesus hearers. Andnotice,heusesthe broadest of pronounsI will be withyou,he says.Further, this promise recalls andfulfills a Messianic name we all know, God with usi.e.,emanu, with us;el, God: Emanuel(Matt 1: 23).

In the final half line of Matthew,Jesus doesntstate a brand-newdoctrine,and the promise isntaddedas an afterthoughttothe record ofamiracle-filled ministry. Jesus has already made similarassurances.Speaking to his disciples at the end of his ministry,hesaid, If anyone lovesme, he will keep my word.My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him (John 14: 23CSB).And again, I will not leave you orphaned, I will come to you (John 14: 18).At the same time, Jesus made anotherpromiseincidentally,areminder ofTrinitarian truth:I will ask the Father and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever (John 14: 16 NIV). Tosummarize, Jesus has promised that the Trinityspecifically, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, our Three-Person Godwillbe present to those who love Jesus,and thats forever, time without end.

What does all this have to do with loneliness?Well, maybe nothing. These words of Jesus will be of no consequence to an atheist. I spent about a year in that affliction, and one thing I remember about it was thesense ofemptinesswhen I looked up at the sky. Before that year, I had been taughtin Sunday school, from the pulpit, but especially by my father,that God can be known through nature. We sang the hymn, This is My Fathers World, and I certainly didnt see empty space when I looked up at the skynot until that unhappy year. During thattime of looking out through atheistseyes,things seemed differentempty, void of meaning. Im grateful that unfortunate condition didnt lastvery long. My point is this: An atheist wont have the same help with loneliness a theistcan anticipate. And for a theist who is also a Christian, an abundance of helpis there for the asking.The Helper, the Holy Spirit,has beenpromised to usthe Spirit of Jesus, who will be with us forever.

Finally, if we take some time to remember who Jesus ishis ministry, his character, his work and lifewe will find ourselves encouraged even in loneliness. Jesus life was a demonstration of the power of God,Love manifested.And ponderingthesuffering of Jesuswillhelp us remember thathe knows the hard things.Hes been there!Something else: ThePerson were thinking about is God the Son, eternal, never unable to address our needs, even the aches and emptiness of lonely days when life seems barren. Tellhim about it.He listens.

The number of over-50s experiencing loneliness is set to reach two million by 2025/6. This compares to around 1.4 million in 2016/7 a 49% increase in 10 years [6]https://www.campaigntoendloneliness.org/the-facts-on-loneliness/Brazil (50%)Turkey (46%)India (43%)Saudi Arabia (43%)Italy (41%)South Africa (40%)Malaysia (39%)Chile (38%)South Korea (38%)Peru (37%)France (36%)Argentina (35%)Great Britain (34%)Mexico (34%)Canada (31%)United States (31%)Australia (30%)Singapore (30%)Thirty-six percent of Americans felt serious loneliness in 2020 (or felt lonely frequently or almost all the time or all the time in the previous month), according to Harvard research.A large-scale Cigna survey that same year pegged loneliness in the United States as being as high as 61 percent.

https://www.everydayhealth.com/loneliness/

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Never Alone The Edgefield Advertiser - Edgefieldadvertiser