You may live in a house with lots of people or you may be an only child. You may be squeezing past hundreds of students in school hallways or watching YouTube in your room at home. Wherever we are, sometimes it seems that loneliness settles upon us like a python—it rests on our shoulders and can even become a companion that we defend and stroke. But all the while, the creature wraps itself tighter and tighter, squeezing breath and life out of us.
David was a young man who was often lonely. He spent a lot of time alone in open fields watching sheep. I’m sure he talked to his pets, but a pet isn’t the same as a close friend, is it? Later, his best friend Jonathan wanted to be there for him, but Jonathan’s father, King Saul, drove David away from his family in a jealous rage. David had to hide in caves, hanging out with troubled guys while Saul hunted him down to try to kill him.
The troubled guys who hung with David came to care greatly for him and were very loyal. But whether on the run or surrounded by four hundred loyal guys, David often struggled with loneliness. In the cave, David said, “I looked on my right hand, and beheld, but there was no man that would know me: refuge failed me; no man cared for my soul” (Psalm 142:4). I believe that we have all felt that way at times: that no one really knows us or really cares about us.
But when David felt alone, He knew who to talk to about it. His very next words are these: “I cried unto thee, O LORD: I said, Thou art my refuge and my portion in the land of the living” (Psalm 142:5). God was a “safe place” for David. Although no one on earth could understand David’s despair and loneliness, God knew and was there to hear David and comfort him. I believe that David would say directly to us, “Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD” (Psalm 27:14). David’s focus was on the only One who could give him hope and comfort—God Himself. God offers that same friendship, hope, and comfort to you. Do you feel alone? Talk to God about it like David did. Tell Him everything. He’ll listen and understand. And He’ll be there for you—in your home, in your school, or in a cave.
Tip: Read David’s song he wrote about his struggles and how God helped him in Psalm 27.
A “Word” to Ponder: “I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee” (Hebrews 13:5).
Originally published in the Holts Summit Community Newsletter.