Overcoming Loneliness

partners and friends of creflo dollar ministries coming up next on changing your world understanding that loneliness is much more than feeling lonesome much more than isolation it's not sin but it can open the door for destruction in your life loneliness is a crippling force loneliness is a disabling force it's not something that we should just kind of brush off it is a crippling disabling force sermon songs is back and this time we're getting face to face with our emotions sermon songs vol 4 is available now and features new music from creflo dollar featuring jordan dollar including the hit singles faith strong strong and joy visit www.songs.com to download and stream today many people deal with loneliness throughout the year but it can seem even worse during the holiday season it can seem like everyone has friends or family to celebrate with but you now don't forget that jesus died not only to bring you wholeness but so that you would never again live life alone god is in the business of restoration and no matter how many people are not with you this holiday season the promise is that god will restore you and lift you up again he also promises in his word that he will never leave you nor forsake you that he is with you even unto the ends of the earth so this season know that i hold you in my heart as a part of our family we love you and know that you are never alone when you are in christ happy holidays [Music] [Music] to have your bibles go with me to the book of deuteronomy chapter 31 verse 6 and let's look at it in the nlt first and then the message deuteronomy 31 and verse 6. you know i began to study this out and i realized that this is a crack that satan is using to try to distract people to cause you to lose focus in your life to get you to a place where he can ultimately wipe you out and to destroy you now i know that you may think by me talking about loneliness that well you understand what i'm saying but i was amazed as i got deeper and deeper in this thing to understand that my understanding of loneliness was was off and it was as most people think it would be i thought it was just isolation it does have something to do but it's bigger than that i want to start off and use as a text deuteronomy 31-6 and then matthew 28 and then we'll begin deuteronomy 31-6 says so be strong and courageous do not be afraid and do not panic before them for the lord your god will personally go ahead of you he will neither fail you nor abandon you now that's a promise that he made he says i'm going to go ahead i'm going to personally go ahead of you and i won't fail you and neither will i abandon you that's a promise of god that we've got to got to stick with and look at this in the message deuteronomy 31 6 he says be strong take courage don't be intimidated don't give them a second thought because god your god is striding ahead of you he's right there with you he won't leave you he won't let you down now notice this and he won't leave you now go back to uh back up he says here he says first of all that god is striding ahead of you so whatever is ahead of you says god's already there taking care of business secondly he's right there with you so he's not only ahead of you but he's right there with you thirdly he won't let you down that's an assurance there and then the last one he won't leave you now you know when you're talking about loneliness you cannot forget about god's promise obviously god must have understood that loneliness was going to be an issue in your christian life and like he promised he has gone ahead of us he has made provisions for us he has accepted the commitment to take care of us and you read these scriptures and say wow wow why these great promises because god understood that loneliness would be something that the enemy was going to try to use to get victory in and over your life now look at matthew chapter 28 verses 18 through 20 and you begin to see the promise of jesus here matthew chapter 28 verses 18 through 20. and jesus came and he spake unto them saying all power is given unto me in heaven and in earth go you therefore because all power has been given unto me go you therefore teach all nations baptizing them in the name of the father and of the son and of the holy ghost teaching them to observe all things whatsoever i've commanded you and he says and lo i'm with you even unto the end of the world amen now he talks about all the power he's been given he talks about teaching and and sharing these things but then at the end of all of this he says that he makes this statement remember i am with you even to the end of the world which lets me think is that if if there's any way that satan will try to attack you to stop you from from ministering the word or carrying out the will of god for your life that jesus knew that somehow maybe loneliness would be a distraction and he says at the end of this after he says all this he says now i don't want you to forget i am going to be with you even unto the end of the world so obviously there's some some situations here one of the things that i want to do is just step back a little bit and say all right so what do we have in the world today what's going on in the world today well loneliness may be and i believe it is it may be the number one emotional problem in our world today lonely people are everywhere lonely people are in theaters lonely people are in restaurants and diners lonely people watch this they're in churches lonely people are in cities lonely people listen to this are in big crowds a recent survey of u.s adults was given and the ugov poll found that 30 of millennials said they they always or often feel lonely compared to 20 of generation x and just 15 of baby boomers but the survey also identified that of all americans 40 percent of americans deal with and say that they are lonely and then it was interesting that this survey discovered that the loneliest age group ranges between 16 years and 24 years old so that means that young people are the loneliest age group in america according to the survey now that doesn't mean that they own they're the only group but according to the survey that you know they're the loneliest and and you know for a lot of reasons you may maybe millennials are not participating in in church or or relationship with god as other generations or not that involved in politics or really engaged into the social media age but uh yet and still that's what we have and i believe that it's much larger than that i believe that if you begin to look at it that if if you can remove the phoniness from christian people you'll find out that there is a great percentage of loneliness in the church and so while you may be holding on to your idea or your definition of what loneliness is let's go ahead and talk about it what is loneliness well one of the best ways to really dig in on something and understand it is before we define loneliness and talk about what loneliness is and what it means let's talk about what loneliness is not and what it does not mean let's talk about the other side the opposite what it's not before we talk about what it is so number one loneliness does not mean the same thing as solitude or being alone see i thought that loneliness was just all about being alone i found out you can be alone you can be uh you can be lonely around a whole bunch of people and what we've got to understand is that loneliness does not mean the same as solitude sometimes it's good to be to be alone solitude just simply means being alone and i am saying that loneliness does not mean the same thing as solitude you see we all have to be alone at times and sometimes being alone is good being along with god is good sometimes being alone to rest is good sometimes being alone from the drama is good but it's not the same thing as being lonely you know at this time there's certain times that this is good for us like i said but jesus set the example here in john chapter 6 verse 15 jesus sets this example as as he stepped away from some things to be alone showing us that the problem by stepping away from some things uh to be alone there was there's no problem with that he says when jesus therefore perceived that they would come and take him by force to make him a king he departed again into a mountain himself alone so he wasn't lonely but he departed in solitude and so loneliness is not the same thing as solitude that's the point i want to make number two loneliness is not being lonesome you heard that phrase before mom lonesome loneliness is not the same thing as being lonesome this is when we miss a loved one who is gone temporarily but we know he or she will return uh and so or we know that they'll be back so i'm lonesome because maybe that person's gone for two weeks or i'm lonesome because maybe you know this person's uh you know in the military i'm lonesome but that doesn't mean the same as as as lonely to be lonesome doesn't mean the same is lonely number three loneliness is not iso isolation now this is the this this is the most familiar definition of loneliness loneliness is not isolation we can be lonely like i said in a crowd you're not isolated you know there's a saying that a city is a place where hundreds of people are lonely together lonely people can be found in the crowd they can be found in the pack stadiums they can be found in arenas they can be found in churches and yes they can even be found in pulpits whoa loneliness is not isolation loneliness is not being lonesome loneliness is not solitude let me tell you what else loneliness is not loneliness is not a sin but it's a part of our imperfect humanity it's a part that shows up as a result of being a fallen man our imperfect humanity some of the greatest saints in the bible suffered from a feeling of loneliness and so you know i want to show you three of them at least in in moses's case uh look at numbers chapter 11 verses 15 and then we'll go to verse 14. but moses moses desired to kill himself now think about this moses desire to kill himself look at verse 15 and if thou deal thus with me kill me i pray thee out of thy hand out of hand if i have found favor in thy sight and let me not see my wretchedness now you would ask why would moses ask god to kill him he says if i got any favor in your in any favor in your sight kill me why would he ask this well the answer is in verse 14. he says i am not able to bear all this people alone because it is too heavy for me so he felt alone because he's like i can't handle this big responsibility and as a result of it look at what look at what loneliness put the frame of mind that loneliness put moses in kill me kill me and so moses felt as if he were facing life and facing this challenge all along look at elijah you know elijah wanted to die in first kings chapter 19 and four look at first king 19 4 and then verse in first kings 19 and 4 he says but he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness and came and sat down on under a juniper tree and he requested for himself that he might die and said it is enough now oh lord take away my life for i am not better than my father's why what i mean this is this anointed man of god why was this the request well move on down to verse 10 and he says and he said i have been very zealous for the lord god of hosts for the children of israel have forsaken my covenant thrown down thy altar slang thy prophets with the swords and i even i only am left and they seek my life to take it away elijah uh here reveals that he felt alone but not not only alone but it was more loneliness and i'll show you as we go on and he wanted to kill himself and you know about the apostle paul 2 timothy chapter 4 and verse 16 think about this loneliness positions a person to want to commit suicide loneliness commissions a person to go through this type of trauma second timothy chapter 4 16. at my first answer no man stood with me but all men forsook me i pray god that it may not be laid to their charge and so here's paul saying there's loneliness taking place with me because there's nobody to stand with me he says there's loneliness that takes place of me because i'm looking around i thought somebody i thought i had somebody that had my back and they forsook me loneliness now notice it's coming loneliness now comes as a result of what paul identifies here being forsaken and feeling like nobody has his back i think it's time now to define it what is loneliness listen to me carefully lonely loneliness is an inward feeling it's an inward emotion that it's a feeling that we are unneeded uncared for unwanted and unnoticed now notice loneliness means that i feel like i'm not needed i feel like i'm not cared for i feel like i'm not wanted i feel like i'm not noticed now that's that's deep that's heavy that's that's heavy it's more than just being alone it's an emotion it's more than being alone it's a feeling and if you've ever gotten yourself uh in a position where you feel like you're not wanted you feel like you're you're not needed you feel like you're not cared for you feel like you're you're not noticed if you don't if you don't understand how to how to focus in on the right thing this will take you down a path that you don't want to go this will take you down the path if you don't deal with that it'll take you down the path where you're thinking about death all the time you're you're you you're becoming all kinds of emotional wreck a feeling an inward feeling that i'm not needed i'm not cared for i'm not wanted i'm not notice look at this scripture in psalms 102 verse 7 in the new king james version psalms 102 verse 7 in the new king james version and these are all feelings that maybe all of us have had one time or another and i can show you why and how we got out of that psalms 102 and verse 7 the new king james version he says i lie awake and am like a sparrow alone on the housetop now i want you to think about this this scripture is saying i mean look at what the psalmist was thinking here what's more insignificant than a sparrow first of all and then he says this sparrow is unnoticed this sparrow is is isolated this sparrow is unwanted this sparrow is alone on the housetop and that's the way the psalmist felt about his own life wow and then if you go to psalms 38 and 11 in the regular king james and then in the nlt psalms 38 and 11 this inward feeling not being wanted not being needed not being cared for not even being noticed he says my lovers and my friends stand aloof from my sore and my kinsmen or my neighbors stand far off look at this in the nlt he says my loved ones and friends stay away fearing my disease so one of the things you're going to see is that if you don't deal with loneliness this can cause you to be dis-ease because it is this easement loneliness is this easement and it can cause disease in your life my loved ones and my friends stay away fearing my disease disease even my family stands at a distance so understanding that loneliness is much more than feeling lonesome much more than isolation it's not sin but it can open the door for destruction in your life loneliness is a crippling force loneliness is a disabling force it's not something that we should just kind of brush off it is a crippling disabling force now i'll i'll tell you why because god created us as human beings we are all human beings but i'm going to tell you why it can be a crippling disabling force because all humans have three basic needs that every human has to have in other words you know you can go around say i don't need that you do every human needs these three basic needs and without them there's going to be some problems and i'll show it to you in scripture the first basic need and this is according to job chapter 19 and 19 the first basic need that every human needs is a need to love and share that love with others a need to love and to share that love with others job in 1919 he says all my inward friends abhor me and they whom i love are turned against me and so this is a human basic need it is a need to love and it is a need to share that love with other people and so when you don't deal with loneliness you're you're avoiding exactly about one of those or all three of those basic needs that i'm about to share with you and they will be crippling in your life now the second basic need a need for someone to understand you job chapter 19 verse 15 and 21 a need for someone to understand you now maybe you've not thought about this before but you know if if there are issues going on with your life emotionally these may these may be some of the areas there's a need for someone to understand you and verse job 19 verse 15 and then 21 he says that they dwell in my house and my maids count me for a stranger wow stranger in your house and i'm an alien in their sight in verse 21 have pity upon me have pity upon me oh you my friends for the hand of god has touched me i mean think of this man that you should you feel so misunderstood or there's no one that understands you to the point where you feel like a stranger in your own house and amongst your own friends there's a basic need for someone to understand you there's a basic need for someone for you to love and to be able to share that love with someone here's the third basic human need number three according to job 19 14 a need listen to this a need to be needed and wanted that is a human basic need a need to be needed and wanted this is probably one of the number one areas of what men suffer from it is that need to be needed and to be wanted and in job chapter 19 verse 14 he says my kins folks have failed and my familiar friends have forgotten me this is expressing the lack of that basic need the need to be needed and the need to be wanted sometimes if you you know if you if you don't understand loneliness and don't deal with it and you just can't put your finger on it that's why i'm teaching this right right now today it it you'll you'll walk around life and you'll walk around in such frustration such sadness such distress maybe leading to depression because you just don't understand that it's not just well you're selfish it's these are basic needs every human in the on the planet has a need to love and to share that love with others every human on the planet has a need for someone to understand them every human on the planet has a need to be needed and to be wanted loneliness may be the number one emotional problem in our world today it's found in the unlikeliest of places but the good news is that jesus is the answer no matter where you are receive creflo dollar's single message overcoming loneliness for a love gift of just seven us dollars or more he is the answer for loneliness he is the answer for feeling like you're unwanted he's the answer for feeling like you're not needed he is the answer for every human need that you have he is the answer he made those basic human needs not so you can go and try to figure out how to fill them but so you so that you can recognize that you can fill them with jesus he says i i'm committed to not forsaking you i got your back i will be there everything that you need you find this commitment in the lord jesus christ i think it's time for you to come to him don't miss out call or visit the website below to learn how to live free from this devastating emotion trinidad and tobago the 2021 virtual change experience is coming to your home if you'll just trust him and believe him that they will adopt your life there's something i'm supposed to do and i will not miss it this year register now by logging onto creplockdollarministries.org we must respond to the spiritual laws of god a proven principle taff and i have operated in for many many years is the law of sowing and reaping now when you sow into this ministry you are sowing into good ground why you see your seed is not wasted in fact your seed is a twice zoned scene meaning that it'll work in different places at the same time your financial seed goes toward helping hurting people both globally and within our local communities we thank god for your support you may support creflo dollar ministries outreach missions by calling us or visiting our website you enrich lives in ways you can't begin to imagine god bless you thank you partners and friends you

Channel: Creflo Dollar Ministries

Views: 15,944

Keywords: creflo, creflodollar, worldchangers, taffi, taffidollar, grace, megachurch, collegepark, atlantachurch, sermon, gracelife, tbn, pastors, church, pastordollar, drdollar

Id: mAp8DT5okZA

Length: 28min 33sec (1713 seconds)

Published: Tue Dec 15 2020