Your post had me thinking of the difference between being alone and being lonely. The simple distinction I came across was "being alone is a situation, while being lonely is a feeling".
As you so rightly say, being alone can provide a perfect opportunity to rest. Loneliness is not necessarily dependent on the situation we are in. I have often experienced my strongest feelings of loneliness when surrounded by people - typically because of a sense of not belonging due to difference in age, language, beliefs, or other delimiter. Similarly, busyness does not always imply an absence of loneliness - it can even be a cover-up to deny or avoid any negative feelings.
I love the fact that you have learned to embrace being alone without being lonely.
"…a pendulum swinging from busyness to loneliness"? OK, well, here it's more like both, continually, but that's another story. YWMV (Your Walk May Vary). Be glad if one gives you a break from the other. These things don't necessarily stop when you've had that talk with Jesus*. They can grow worse.
Speaking of walks, Matthew 7:14, "For the gate is narrow and the way is constricted that leads to life, and there are few who find it", seems often to suffer from translation difficulties with the adjective used to describe the "way" or "path". The above translation, from the ZECNT Matthew commentary is better, using "confined", and the KJV seems to have done well (for 1611 or so English) with "strait" (not "straight"!). I prefer to read it as "difficult", because this path that begins upon squeezing through the narrow gate is indeed difficult, and it is meant to be that way.
My choir's anthem this past Sunday, _The Narrow Way_, at least hints of this difficulty in its title and lyrics, although the tone of the prayer is positive, describing our response to the difficulties. (The anthem is posted on my Substack if you'd like to hear.) The way is indeed narrow, but it is worse than that. My commentary puts it this way:
"'Confined' is a good translation for τεθλιμμένη ['tethlimmenē'], from the cognate θλῖψις ['thliphis'], 'trouble, persecution.' There well may be the idea of hardship and persecution, as in Acts 14:22, 'We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God.' The persecution of the saints is a major Matthean motif (5:10–11, 44; 10:16–23, 35–36; 13:21; 23:34–35; 24:9–13, 16–21) and is likely implied here."
My church's sermon tomorrow (I possess and have studied the pastor's sermon notes for it because I will be running the slides during my service tomorrow morning -- no, I did not hear the sermon in a vision) drills down into the difficulties we face on the path. I can't recall having encountered anything like this before in a sermon, although I run into such difficulties constantly in my life. That's how this journey goes.
You write about rest, and rest in its various forms is essential during a difficult journey. In my Bible studies I was surprised to recently learn something new from Genesis 2:2-3: "By the seventh day God completed His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because on it He rested from all His work which God had created and made." (NASB)
This is creation, not Mosaic law. I have been proceeding very slowly through Genesis, working with the Hebrew-level _Word Biblical Commentary: Genesis_, and learning details that I never was taught or I failed to remember (in spite of growing up in my mother's Sabbatarian church). The commentary contains far more details about these two verses than would be practical for me to quote here, but here are some highlights:
"… Though the seventh day is not called the Sabbath, God “blessed” it and “hallowed” it. These are striking terms to apply to a day. Biblical usage generally restricts blessing to animate beings—God, men, animals and so on—and it is not immediately obvious in what sense a day can be blessed (cf. 1:22, 28). Divine blessing on men and animals leads to fruitfulness and success, and it is paradoxical that the day on which God refrains from creative activity is pronounced blessed. Partly the Sabbath is blessed by being 'hallowed', but there is also the suggestion that those who observe the Sabbath will enjoy divine blessing in their lives.
"Similarly, it is unusual for a day to be 'hallowed,' that is, made or declared holy. … Places, people, and religious objects may be hallowed, but apart from the Sabbath, only in Neh 8:9, 11 is a festival day called holy. God is holy: holiness is the essence of his character. Anything else that is described as holy in the OT derives its holiness from being chosen by God and given to him in the correct prescribed manner … . The seventh day is the very first thing to be hallowed in Scripture, to acquire that special status that properly belongs to God alone. In this way Genesis emphasizes the sacredness of the Sabbath. Coupled with the threefold reference to God resting from all his work on that day, these verses give the clearest of hints of how man created in the divine image should conduct himself on the seventh day. …"
Genesis 2:2-3 is affirmed in Exodus 20:8-11, the Fourth Commandment. In verse 8 is found the somewhat odd-sounding phrase "to keep it holy" -- "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy" -- about which I always wondered and now understand. The Hebrew word used there means "consecrate". It is the same word as in Genesis 2:3, translated "hallowed" in the commentary above, or "sanctified" in the NASB. Do we remember that?
Loneliness is tough. I often have conversations with God about it. I don't want it gone -- I enjoy solitude, up to a point, even when it is becoming uncomfortable. But beyond that point, we all need to be asking for help, gratefully. Weekly rest helps too.
-----------
*"Talking with Jesus" comes up in another anthem on my Substack from earlier this year -- "Take It to the Lord in Prayer". I love singing these pieces.
Ah..we can all identify with lonliness. For me, if it weren't for the intimate times of (intentional) worship with my Father, I would be destitute. Having a spouse is helpful but rarely dips below the surface of even coming close to satisfying that recurring air of lonliness. Perhaps the desire has grown cold over the span of 4 decades of being together.. I pray that it is not so, but the pervasive sense of being alone is still there. Getting lost in the never ending love story of how Christ loved me is my only redemption it would seem.
Amen. This is the reason for our disposable universe. The Lord decided to build a place where we could have fellowship and companionship as a constant part of our life. To do that He needed to build a training place to sort out all the people He created and welcome all those who choose to love Him and be with Him. A simple plan—yet so delightful. He designed each of us to have a unique blend of character, focus, skills, and abilities. After He gets rid of the evil, we will be able to freely love and serve all those we live with.
We will each have our own thing that delights us—and it will be useful. What a joy and satisfaction that will be. We'll be able to talk with our spouse, the King, anytime we want. And we'll be able to have conversations while seeing and understanding what is going on. On a side note: the Rabbis tell us that the animals in the Garden could talk. Aaaaaah.
Thanks for sharing!
As a veteran we have two service dogs Patrick Tis Himself (Lhasa Apso) We are Irish. And Bailey (Morkie). Their the best!
Your post had me thinking of the difference between being alone and being lonely. The simple distinction I came across was "being alone is a situation, while being lonely is a feeling".
As you so rightly say, being alone can provide a perfect opportunity to rest. Loneliness is not necessarily dependent on the situation we are in. I have often experienced my strongest feelings of loneliness when surrounded by people - typically because of a sense of not belonging due to difference in age, language, beliefs, or other delimiter. Similarly, busyness does not always imply an absence of loneliness - it can even be a cover-up to deny or avoid any negative feelings.
I love the fact that you have learned to embrace being alone without being lonely.
"…a pendulum swinging from busyness to loneliness"? OK, well, here it's more like both, continually, but that's another story. YWMV (Your Walk May Vary). Be glad if one gives you a break from the other. These things don't necessarily stop when you've had that talk with Jesus*. They can grow worse.
Speaking of walks, Matthew 7:14, "For the gate is narrow and the way is constricted that leads to life, and there are few who find it", seems often to suffer from translation difficulties with the adjective used to describe the "way" or "path". The above translation, from the ZECNT Matthew commentary is better, using "confined", and the KJV seems to have done well (for 1611 or so English) with "strait" (not "straight"!). I prefer to read it as "difficult", because this path that begins upon squeezing through the narrow gate is indeed difficult, and it is meant to be that way.
My choir's anthem this past Sunday, _The Narrow Way_, at least hints of this difficulty in its title and lyrics, although the tone of the prayer is positive, describing our response to the difficulties. (The anthem is posted on my Substack if you'd like to hear.) The way is indeed narrow, but it is worse than that. My commentary puts it this way:
"'Confined' is a good translation for τεθλιμμένη ['tethlimmenē'], from the cognate θλῖψις ['thliphis'], 'trouble, persecution.' There well may be the idea of hardship and persecution, as in Acts 14:22, 'We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God.' The persecution of the saints is a major Matthean motif (5:10–11, 44; 10:16–23, 35–36; 13:21; 23:34–35; 24:9–13, 16–21) and is likely implied here."
My church's sermon tomorrow (I possess and have studied the pastor's sermon notes for it because I will be running the slides during my service tomorrow morning -- no, I did not hear the sermon in a vision) drills down into the difficulties we face on the path. I can't recall having encountered anything like this before in a sermon, although I run into such difficulties constantly in my life. That's how this journey goes.
You write about rest, and rest in its various forms is essential during a difficult journey. In my Bible studies I was surprised to recently learn something new from Genesis 2:2-3: "By the seventh day God completed His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because on it He rested from all His work which God had created and made." (NASB)
This is creation, not Mosaic law. I have been proceeding very slowly through Genesis, working with the Hebrew-level _Word Biblical Commentary: Genesis_, and learning details that I never was taught or I failed to remember (in spite of growing up in my mother's Sabbatarian church). The commentary contains far more details about these two verses than would be practical for me to quote here, but here are some highlights:
"… Though the seventh day is not called the Sabbath, God “blessed” it and “hallowed” it. These are striking terms to apply to a day. Biblical usage generally restricts blessing to animate beings—God, men, animals and so on—and it is not immediately obvious in what sense a day can be blessed (cf. 1:22, 28). Divine blessing on men and animals leads to fruitfulness and success, and it is paradoxical that the day on which God refrains from creative activity is pronounced blessed. Partly the Sabbath is blessed by being 'hallowed', but there is also the suggestion that those who observe the Sabbath will enjoy divine blessing in their lives.
"Similarly, it is unusual for a day to be 'hallowed,' that is, made or declared holy. … Places, people, and religious objects may be hallowed, but apart from the Sabbath, only in Neh 8:9, 11 is a festival day called holy. God is holy: holiness is the essence of his character. Anything else that is described as holy in the OT derives its holiness from being chosen by God and given to him in the correct prescribed manner … . The seventh day is the very first thing to be hallowed in Scripture, to acquire that special status that properly belongs to God alone. In this way Genesis emphasizes the sacredness of the Sabbath. Coupled with the threefold reference to God resting from all his work on that day, these verses give the clearest of hints of how man created in the divine image should conduct himself on the seventh day. …"
Genesis 2:2-3 is affirmed in Exodus 20:8-11, the Fourth Commandment. In verse 8 is found the somewhat odd-sounding phrase "to keep it holy" -- "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy" -- about which I always wondered and now understand. The Hebrew word used there means "consecrate". It is the same word as in Genesis 2:3, translated "hallowed" in the commentary above, or "sanctified" in the NASB. Do we remember that?
Loneliness is tough. I often have conversations with God about it. I don't want it gone -- I enjoy solitude, up to a point, even when it is becoming uncomfortable. But beyond that point, we all need to be asking for help, gratefully. Weekly rest helps too.
-----------
*"Talking with Jesus" comes up in another anthem on my Substack from earlier this year -- "Take It to the Lord in Prayer". I love singing these pieces.
Ah..we can all identify with lonliness. For me, if it weren't for the intimate times of (intentional) worship with my Father, I would be destitute. Having a spouse is helpful but rarely dips below the surface of even coming close to satisfying that recurring air of lonliness. Perhaps the desire has grown cold over the span of 4 decades of being together.. I pray that it is not so, but the pervasive sense of being alone is still there. Getting lost in the never ending love story of how Christ loved me is my only redemption it would seem.
Amen. This is the reason for our disposable universe. The Lord decided to build a place where we could have fellowship and companionship as a constant part of our life. To do that He needed to build a training place to sort out all the people He created and welcome all those who choose to love Him and be with Him. A simple plan—yet so delightful. He designed each of us to have a unique blend of character, focus, skills, and abilities. After He gets rid of the evil, we will be able to freely love and serve all those we live with.
We will each have our own thing that delights us—and it will be useful. What a joy and satisfaction that will be. We'll be able to talk with our spouse, the King, anytime we want. And we'll be able to have conversations while seeing and understanding what is going on. On a side note: the Rabbis tell us that the animals in the Garden could talk. Aaaaaah.
🫶 So true! I can empathize with this!