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Mensa Otabil - When You Feel Alone


Mensa Otabil - When You Feel Alone
TOPICS: Word to Go, Loneliness

First Kings chapter 19, verse 14. And he said, "I've been very zealous for the Lord God of hosts because the children of Israel have forsaken your covenant, torn down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword. I alone am left, and they seek to take my life." This is Elijah having a conversation with God. God asks Elijah, "What's going on with your life?" and this is what he tells God.

Elijah is feeling very lonely. Loneliness can be very miserable for some people; they feel lonely off and on. For others, loneliness is almost a constant reality. The thing about loneliness is that you don't have to be alone to feel lonely. Sometimes you can be surrounded by people, by friends who are laughing and cheering, yet you feel alone and abundant, and you feel lonely. Many factors can contribute to this. Sometimes it could be that we feel lonely because we are in a bad place, we're in a struggle; something is going wrong. Other times, we don't even have anybody to share our triumphs, stories, and successes with.

So, Elijah is faced with this moment in his life. God has used Elijah to accomplish some extraordinary things. He, as an individual, had confronted 450 prophets of Baal in a challenge on Mount Carmel, and he had come through successfully. God had answered Elijah's prayer with fire, and Elijah had prayed again, and God had answered his prayer with rain. Now, how could somebody who had experienced such a triumphant moment in life feel lonely? Why is he so depressed? Well, before Elijah could enjoy his victory, before he could say, "Hey, what a great time I've had," he received a message from a woman, Jezebel, the queen of Israel, who said, " I'm going to make sure that your life will count for nothing. I'm going to kill you. I'm going to destroy you, Elijah."

Elijah was so taken by this that he forgot about all the victory; he forgot about all the great things God had done for him. He felt alone, mainly because he thought that there was nobody with him, nobody standing with him, and nobody caring for him. You know, many times we feel lonely because we think, in our moments of crisis, nobody cares for us. We carry our burdens alone; we carry our pain alone; we carry our difficulties alone. We cry alone. And maybe you are feeling like Elijah. Around you, it seems like everything is going well, but inside of you, you feel nothing is working for you. You feel deflated; nobody really shares what is deeply inside of you. Or maybe you don't even know whom to tell your good news to, and you just feel so cut off from everybody. That's what Elijah feels.

This week, if you feel like that, I pray that you would find comfort in the story of Elijah, that God will strengthen you, that God will surround you with His love and with His presence. May you feel the presence of God so close to you that although you may not feel human presence, you will know that God cares about you, that God is with you, that God understands what you're going through, that God hears the cry of your heart, He hears the prayer of your heart. And although there is no one to cheer you on, and you're hearing so much bad news, God is with you. Jesus promised and said, "Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the world." There is one thing you can always guarantee: that God is always with you; He cares for you.

So for everyone feeling alone, may the presence of God surround you this morning, in Jesus' name. Let us pray. Say with me, "Heavenly Father, I know you are with me at all times. Let me sense your presence around me today, in Jesus' name, amen and amen." As you go through the day, may the presence of the Lord go with you. I will catch you again tomorrow. I'm Pastor Mensa Otabil. Shalom, peace, and life to you.