I went for a walk in the dark last night.
I walked for several blocks before I realized that I had no clear destination. So I stopped on the street corner and FELT.
What I FELT was lonely.
I didn't like that feeling much, although we've met on several occasions. The night just started to FEEL darker the longer I stood there. I thought to myself, don't get to hard on yourself - the Apostle Paul must've felt lonely at times. There must've been days in the midst of the fight where he stopped walking and sat down at the side of the dusty roman road and just felt lonely - maybe he had times where he had no clear destination. (So often I confine Paul to being this two-dimensional character in a story and forget he was a real man. I bet we would have had some great talks) one thing that we would agree on is to choose not to feel alone and instead lean on th unseen perhaps unfelt Immanuel presence.
When I begin to feel lonely, I can make the CHOICE to believe the lie that I am indeed all alone and sink deeper into darkness OR believ in the absolute Truth that He will never leave me. It's enough to make me shake off the dust, rise up and dance again...