Recently, I’ve been struggling with loneliness.
I’m sure at some point in time you’ve experienced the same “being alone” feeling. Honestly, it’s really hard.
I’m 20-years-old; most of the people I know are either in a relationship, getting married, or having kids.
And I’m just here like, “Okay, Lord. I enjoy being single, kind of. I’ve been doing it for a while now and I’m ready for the next season of life to get here.”
Needless to say, I realize that being dissatisfied with where the Lord has me isn’t a good thing, so I’ve been praying about it. Slowly, but surely, the Lord has been breaking my heart open and teaching me a few lessons that are much needed.
They’ve helped me a lot, and I hope in some way or form they can help you too.
A couple of days ago, I got together with one of my strong Christian friends to pray. We prayed for everything under the sun, but she specifically prayed over me for this season in my life.
While she was praying, she said something profound that began to change the way my heart and mind were feeling about my general dissatisfaction.
She prayed, “Lord, I pray that You would be enough for Sam. I pray that she would be so in love with You that she wouldn’t need anyone or anything else.”
Talk about convicting.
This prayer brought a certain passage to mind, when Paul is praying for the thorn in his flesh:
“Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Corinthians 12:7-10).
Through this passage, the Lord has challenged me with this question:
Is Jesus enough?
Well, Lord, when you put it that way, you make it sound like I’m not appreciative of the gospel or something. I mean, I appreciate what Jesus did for me, it’s just that….
And He asks me again,
Am I not sufficient? Did I not do enough for you?
Matthew 6:26-27, 32-34 says,
“Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life[e]?…For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
So, friends, I ask you the same question.
Wherever you are in life, whatever you’re struggling with, ask yourself, “Is Jesus enough?”
I found myself in a place where I had lost sight of Christ and all that He had done for me. I found myself in a place where I was saying that Jesus wasn’t enough, when really, He is all I have ever or will ever need.
When we run after Him and His kingdom, He will provide for us. We, as Christians, have to realize that Jesus has already given us everything, and that is salvation and eternity with Him.
My point is, don’t lose sight of the cross.
Don’t let anyone or anything take the place of Jesus. He took our place; He volunteered to die so we wouldn’t have to. He saved us.
So when it comes down to my loneliness and your struggles, when we find ourselves wanting more, let us look to Jesus and say, “For me, to live is Christ. He is enough.”
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Thank you for writing this. ~Anna
I’m glad you enjoyed it! 🙂 ~Sam
This is a wonderful article, Samantha. Thank you for writing this, I really needed this today. Thanks for reminding me that Jesus is enough!
Hey! Thank you so much! I’m glad the Lord used it to speak to you 🙂
Hey Sam! This. was. Perfect. I’ve been struggling a lot with loneliness as well, and this has actually been a question I’ve been asking myself a lot lately. Thank you for writing this and challenging me! It was really encouraging!! 🙂
Hey! I’m so happy that the Lord used it to speak to you! It’s so encouraging for me to know that other people struggle with the same thing I do 🙂 Thanks for the comment! Happy you liked it!
Wow! What a great reminder this is, Sam! Thank you so much for writing this! I just absolutely loved it!
Thank you so much, Samantha. I needed to hear this – I’ve been feeling lonely lately, and although I know in my head that there’s still plenty I can get out of my singleness (and I do enjoy being single, honestly), I still want a friend. Not a boyfriend, yet, but a girl friend. I don’t have one and I miss it. So this was a timely reminder for me. Thank you.
Wow…I was crying when I read your article. It touched me so much…Thank you for reminding me that Jesus is enough.
I’m so blessed that the Lord used it to speak to you 🙂 I’ll be praying the Lord continues to reveal Himself to you and that you will allow Him to be all that you need <3
Thanks for this beautiful article!
Proud “momma” alert! You are an amazing young lady and I’m so proud that you are my daughter. My sweet girl, God is preparing the perfect man for you, and He will reveal it when he knows you’re ready. Stay strong and keep your eye on the prize. This verse always helps me find my bearings when I am searching for answers,
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares
the LORD. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways
higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” (Isaiah 55:8-9)
I love you!
MOM
Thank you momma <3 I love you!!
Thanks for writing this, it was really helpful.
Love, love, love, love this!! I am dealing with this pretty strong and this was so encouraging. Thank you, Samantha!!
Spot on remarks and scripture references and big props to your parents for training you so well 😉
I’ve certainly been challenged by similar thoughts too, but reminding ourselves that God is enough is truly the only answer. As a practical matter, after realizing this, I also realized how God uses singleness — at least in my life — to give me enormous flexibility to learn and produce new knowledge (through research) in a way that I simply could not have done with other commitments. Plus, how can we complain when we’re so much more fortunate than the majority of the world — whether it’s someone in Africa, China, or [insert many other countries here]? Our culture reinforces this dating mentality, so we have to remind ourselves that God puts us here for a reason and will orchestrate the circumstances as He sees fit as long as we’re always pursuing His kingdom.
Keep up the diligence!
I love this. I worry about being alone.
Wow! I soooooo need this. It can be easy to let our feelings control us, but it is sooooo not healthy. Jesus is enough! Amen.
This is scary. I scroll down to the bottom of the page and three of the also on theRebelution articles show comments I wrote. No. My ego is taking over!!!
Wow. Can I just say God is sovereign? It’s amazing how timely these articles are. I don’t read The Rebelution too often, but when I do, I get a “WOW!”
Honestly I’m still trying to find the answer too not being lonely……..(I know God is always there but it does get lonely sometimes)
Wow. Just wow. I seriously think that God wanted me to read this article today. It really hit home.
It’s funny because God works in mysterious ways. The verse references you used in this article were the exact same references I have been thinking about for the last couple of days. I have been struggling through life lately and I needed this. Thank you SO much!