Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. James 4:8

There’s more than one disease plaguing humankind this Christmas–loneliness is a global epidemic.  Locked down and socially isolated by the pandemic, people of all ages have felt the pangs of loneliness.  Many are still working from home and large numbers of former churchgoers have simply given up gathering together in person.  Now, we greet Christmas in our loneliness.

In the Manger, lies a baby who would know loneliness His entire life.  As a kid, he would never be like his childhood peers.  He would grow to be a man “despised and rejected… a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief” (Isaiah 53:3).  His own brothers didn’t believe in Him until possibly after His resurrection (John 7:5, Acts 1:14) and then He experienced the ultimate loneliness of rejection by His Father, as He took the sin of the world upon Himself in His death.

Jesus, of the Manger waits for you to come in your loneliness.  When you choose to bring your loneliness to Him, a shift takes place.  “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you,” wrote James the brother of Jesus (James 4:8).

You’ll find others at the Manger.  Jesus-follower, you were meant to do life with your global community called the Body of Christ.  Yes, it’s hard to reach out; it’s the last thing you feel like doing.  But from your loneliness, you can encourage another, even if by just a text or phone call.  Then again, dropping by to say hello with a plate of Christmas cookies wouldn’t hurt.

 

Resource reading: Hebrews 10:23-25