hope Archives - Page 5 of 8 - Jackie M. Johnson

When You Feel Lonely: Powerful Hope for Living Connected

Loneliness. It’s not a topic most people talk about.

Whether you’ve just ended a relationship and friends are scarce, or you’re so busy at work that you don’t have time for new friendships—there are many reasons we feel isolated or alone.

In fact, we can be lonely because we are physically alone, or we can feel left out or alienated even when we are surrounded by people.

No matter what the reason, it hurts to feel isolated, disconnected or unnoticed.

Loneliness vs. Solitude
But there’s a difference between loneliness and solitude. Sometimes we need the peace and quiet time alone brings; other times we need connection with others.

Solitude can be replenishing after a hard week at work or in our prayer time with God. With the One who loves us most we can pour out our problems to God, ask for help, and thank Him for all He has done for us.

Hosea 2:14 reads, “I will lead you into solitude and there I shall speak to your heart.” In the stillness, in the quiet, we can hear what God is trying to communicate to us. Away from noise and distractions we can absorb truth in new ways.

Loneliness is different.

One definition says that “Loneliness is a painful awareness that we lack close and meaningful contact with others. It involves a feeling of inner emptiness, isolation and intense longing.”

In addition, you may feel feel sad, anxious or inferior because you are unable to connect with people—or connect with a certain person.

The importance of connection
We live in society that exalts self-reliance, and a time when we are more disconnected than ever.

From my living room in Colorado, I can email my family in Minnesota or Facebook with readers in Brazil. Other the other hand, technology may limit a person’s face-to-face-interactions and in-person friendships.

Online, for instance, we may go wide (have a lot of ‘friends’) but not go deep (as in having meaningful relationships with good friends).

We all need to connect with other people.

We can do so by building bridges to other people, and connecting in person, and not living solely a virtual life. Bridges provide a link from one place to another. Friendships connect one isolated person to another, and soon community is built.

Getting connected
We were created to need each other and to serve each other’s needs. Indeed, our longing for love, friendship and heart friends (close friends) is real. It’s vital to our emotional wellbeing.

The truth is, you can build connections in all different areas of life. Consider these areas of community to connect with others:

• Spiritual community with people at church, or in a small group, prayer group, missions team or one-on-one with someone like-minded.
• Social community through a bowling league, mom’s group, singles group, coffee with friends.
• Intellectual community with people from work, joining a book group or other group with shared interests.
• Physical community in joining a sports team, dance class or getting workout partner for the gym.
• Neighborhood or city community can be built be showing up at your local playground, a neighborhood block party, or mentoring a disadvantaged youth.
• Virtual community is a way to connect with others, but make sure it’s not your only connection with other people.

Connecting with God

Of course, the first one to make a connection with is the most important One, with God.

Through prayer and our relationship with God we have the most primary and meaningful connection possible.

Prayer is talking with God, not at Him. It’s a holy conversation of both speaking and listening. Your words don’t have to be perfect or rehearsed, just real and from your heart.

Tell God how you feel and what you need. Thank Him for all He has done for you and for those you love. When you don’t know what to say, even the simple prayer of, “Help!” will reach the loving ears of God.

How to overcome loneliness
• Ask God to make His presence real and close to you today. Ask Him to help you have hope things really can change in your life. You can also ask God to give you courage to reach out to another person today or to bring caring relationships—like friends, family, or other new people into your life.
• Pray. Below are some starter prayers to help get you out of feeling lonely and back to feeling hopeful again.
• Ask yourself: What is one thing you can do today to build a bridge, to connect with another person?

Jesus said, “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:20).

When you know God, you are never alone.

***

Here are some short prayers on Overcoming Loneliness to get you started…

Turn to me and be gracious to me, 
for I am lonely and afflicted.
Psalm 25:16
Lord, You know the pain I am in right now. I feel so empty and alone. I know I’ve been isolated and need contact with other people, but sometimes it’s hard. Will you please help me learn how to build bridges to other people? I need closer friendships. I need close-knit community. I long for it. Help me to overcome and find joy again. I ask in Jesus’ name. Amen.

And surely I am with you always,
to the very end of the age.
Matthew 28:20
Lord, what a comfort it is to know that You are always with me, and that You never leave. So many times people disappoint me. I want to trust and make connections with people, but it hasn’t happened yet. With you, there is peace and stability. You are my strength when I am weak, my true consolation when I am sad. Here in Your presence I abide, I dwell. Thank you for always being near. I am never alone. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

God sets the lonely in families…
Psalm 68:6
Lord, I need you. I have felt alone and friendless lately. Will you help me to get connected with my family, or people who may become like family to me? Will you fill this emptiness in me with Your love, so I can be filled up and have something to offer others? I need community. I need friendship. Please show me where I belong. I want to walk this path of life with others who will build me up, not tear me down. And, I want to encourage others, to give and take. I ask in Jesus’ name. Amen.

What, then, shall we say in response to these things?
If God is for us, who can be against us?
Romans 8:31
Lord, it makes me glad to know that you are for me! You, the One who is ultimate love and ultimate authority designed me and has favor toward me. Thank you. In my desolate desert times I have felt so alone, so desperate at times. But when I remember the truth that You are with me and for me, it releases the pain and fills my heart with hope and joy. I am grateful. And I praise Your holy name. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

More resources by Jackie M. Johnson:

• When Love Ends and the Ice Cream Carton Is Empty (How to Get Over a Breakup)
• Praying with Power When Life Gets Tough (Hope and Encouragement for DifficultTimes)
• Hope on the Go (Bite-Sized Encouragement for Busy People)
• Singles Blog

Photo: Jure Širić, Unsplash

By Jackie M. Johnson

How to Experience the Love, Hope and Grace of Easter All Year Long

When I was a kid, Easter was all about the candy—and how much my siblings and I could consume before our parents pulled the plug on our holiday sugar fix.

Of course, we dyed eggs of various pastel colors. And, I looked forward to wearing a pretty new dress on Easter Sunday.

I enjoyed the festivities and the food (especially the lamb-shaped cake with coconut that my Grandma always served). Back then, I had no idea there was more to this springtime celebration.

Infinitely more.

When I was in high school, I learned about the true and deeper meaning of Easter. And about the complete forgiveness, amazing grace and unconditional love available to each of us through Jesus Christ.

Amazing Love
Think about someone you love. Maybe it’s your boyfriend or girlfriend, husband or wife, best friend, or a child.

As much as you love that person, God loves you infinitely more than that.

If only we knew how much God loves us. It would change everything.

In fact, God loved you and me—and all people—so much that he demonstrated it in a way the world would never forget.

John 3:16 tells us, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

That, my friend, is very good news.

Because of what Jesus Christ accomplished by overcoming death and rising again victorious and alive, we can live forever, forgiven and free! Grace has made a way for us.

That is the hope and joy of Easter.

After the darkness and death of Good Friday comes the startling good news of Easter Sunday. He’s alive! I’m forgiven. Let’s celebrate!

So how can we live out the joy of Easter every day?

Here are four (4) key ideas I’ve been pondering:

1. There is no resurrection without first a death. There is no glorious Easter Sunday without Good Friday. Likewise, some things in our own lives need to “die,” to be surrendered, to God so we can become all we’re intended to be.

Think about a seed falling into the ground. Jesus said (as recorded in John 12: 24): “Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds.”

Alone, one seed is just one seed. But planted, a seed will grow to be a tall plant or flower—or in this case, a crop of wheat. But the seed has to first die before it brings forth life.

Just as a seed surrenders to the soil, we learn to surrender our selfish and sinful ways. It’s not always easy. But as we persevere—and wait—we find that God grows in us His best outcomes and lasting spiritual fruit.

2. There’s a time of waiting. After Christ was buried in a tomb, silence. In our own lives, when we surrender different areas of our lives to God we often have to wait days, years or decades for things to change. But it is in the quiet and dark seasons of life that our character is tested.

How will we respond while we wait—with patience and faith, or with pouting and fear?

The good news is that eventually a seed begins to sprout, and one day it bears fruit. So, too, we can reap a harvest of a lifetime from our surrendered hopes and dreams as we persevere and have faith.

Galatians 6:9 reminds us to trust God’s timing: “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”

3. Believe for the day things will “arise.” At the first break of dawn, on the third day after He was buried, a group of people went to the tomb to check on the body of Jesus. Here’s what happened:

As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed. “Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.” (Mark 16:5-7)

Easter means ultimate victory! Christ rose from the dead. And, today He resurrects hopes and dreams in our lives too.

Like a tender green shoot that erupts from the cool, dark earth, something worthy and wonderful happens in our own lives. To our joyful surprise, we arise to:
Joy after sorrow.
Peace after pain.
Forgiveness after an argument.
A dormant dream finally awakened.
Hope for the days ahead.

4. Live like you believe it. Easter is only one day of the year. But we can live the joy of the holiday every day as we learn to surrender, knowing that it leads to a fruitful and triumphant life.

Do you have dreams that seem dead? A dream of a healthy dating relationship, a great marriage, a loving family? Do you desire to start a business or ministry, lose weight or do something that seems like it’s never going to happen?

As believers, we have “incomparably great power…that power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead.” (See Ephesians 1:19-20).
That’s some kind of power! God’s strength is available to you and me today—and every day.

As you anticipate the upcoming Easter season, try some of these ideas to prepare your heart for Resurrection Sunday:
• Read the Easter story. Sure, this is familiar to many of you. But read it again, perhaps with others (or even read it aloud), and find some new insights this year. If this is new, turn to the book of Mark (or any of the Gospels) in your Bible and read what God has done.

• Reflect. In your prayer time with God, ask Him what you need to surrender, let go of, in your life, and what you need to arise to in your life. Ask Him for the strength to help you.

• Gather with other believers at church on Easter morning. Or, find a sunrise service in your area held outdoors, which can be inspiring in new ways.

May the JOY of Easter be with you this season, and every day of the year.

Additional Resources by Jackie M. Johnson

Power Prayers for Women
Prayers with Purpose for Women
Praying with Power When Life Gets Tough
When Love Ends and the Ice Cream Carton Is Empty

By Jackie M. Johnson

Triumph After Tragedy: A Lesson from Redwood Trees

Forest fires can be devastating. So much loss.

As you scan the landscape in the aftermath of such a disaster, like the massive wildfires we’ve had in Colorado over the years, you see some trees completely obliterated and others with black, charred limbs.

The Redwood trees, however, have a secret.

Grown mostly in California and southern Oregon, these centuries-old giants—300 feet or taller—have a unique ability to withstand fire. In addition to their high branches and the dense bark that provides protection, Redwood trees lack a flammable resin on their bark (which most other types of trees have) rendering them mostly fireproof.

Even when the heat of a forest fire is so intense that it kills the tree, the roots often survive because they are buried in the cool, moist soil.

And in time, new sprouts begin to appear on the burned trees. New growth. New life.

Triumph after tragedy.

You may have suffered unspeakable losses, too. And you feel like your life will never be the same. That may be true; it may never be the exact same way things were before your loss. But, like the Redwoods, new life—a different life–can sprout again.

You may be hurting now, but you are not harmed beyond repair.

You are still here. Still standing. Still living life the best you can.

As you get back to the roots of truth in your life, re-growth comes. Thankfully, the heart is surprisingly resilient.

Remember the basics:
You are God’s child.
He is here, with you always.
God loves you with an everlasting love.
He is your comfort. Your healing. Your strength. Your joy.

And He is working, even now, to bring all things together for the good. While we may not always see it or feel it right now, your loving, healing God is repairing the burned out pieces of your heart.

Trust God for new hope.

Healing will come. And all things will be made new.

RESOURCES

For more hope and healing, check out these books by Jackie M. Johnson:

Praying with Power When Life Gets Tough

Power Prayers for Women

Prayers with Purpose for Women

Photo: Jordan Pulmano on Unsplash

By Jackie M. Johnson

Discouraged? 4 Vital Ways to Stand Strong When You Feel Like Giving Up

Life can be challenging. No matter what your age or life stage, we all get discouraged.

Whether you’re stressed from too much work, or anxious because you lost your job, you may feel depleted. Maybe you’re wiped out from caring for kids or aging parents all day–or you’re lonely because you just moved across the country and don’t know anyone yet. Either way, we all have times when we feel like giving up.

How do you press on when you just don’t have it in you? How do you stand strong in challenging times?

You need a solid foundation.

When a skyscraper is under construction, workers first dig a foundation and then pound steel reinforcing rods called pylons deep into the earth so the building will stand tall and not tumble.

Then, concrete is poured into the shaft with the pylons for a super-strong hold.

The same can be true as you build a “foundation” in your own life—as you grow deeper, you grow stronger in your faith. As you immerse yourself in the ways and wisdom of God, the reinforced truth, like pylons of

Hope,

Trust,

Courage, and

Faith,

help you become stronger on the inside.

So when you’re discouraged, and your life is spiraling downward, you will be able to withstand more readily the gale-force winds of hard times and pain because your inner foundation is deep and strong.

Steel upon steel, story upon story a structure is built.

Likewise, God’s Word tells us that hope comes step by step as “suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. (Romans 5:3, 4)

So, how do you press on when times are tough? Here are four (4) vital things to help you persevere with God’s strength:

1) Cast your cares. Don’t take on burdens you were never meant to bear—like worry, fear and doubt. They’ll weigh you down and hinder you from being effective.

Instead, give God your fears; surrender trying to do it all on your own to Him. In other words, like a fishing line, “cast your cares, and don’t reel them back in again.” Psalm 55:22 says, “Cast your cares on the LORD and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken.”

2) Press on in prayer. Prayer is the foundation upon which everything else is built in your life. It the most important thing you can do. You may think, “I’ve already prayed, what other solutions are there?” Keep on praying.

Talk to God about your situation, because He is the one who has the power to change it. As you pray, believe God is working and stand in the strength you receive.

3) Send in reinforcements. Sometimes you need backup. It’s amazing what happens when you receive support in prayer from friends and family members who are willing to pray for you and with you.

When you don’t know what to pray, when you’re spent emotionally or physically, or, like Moses, when you need someone to “hold up your arms” (to support you), the prayers of others on your behalf can give you a boost to keep going.

4) Take action. Taking one small step can lead to another and another and it builds momentum, and things begin to change. You will not be in this hard place forever. God will help you through. Unlike others who may have let you down, God keeps His promises. When you take action in prayer, God moves on your behalf.

Perseverance takes courage. Believe that God hears your prayers; He sees your tears, and He is at work in your life.

There are still purposes to be fulfilled—lives to touch, things to accomplish, and character to be formed on the inside.

Press on, pray on, with holy tenacity, holding on to hope that one day—maybe soon—things will change for the better: the check will come, the job will be yours, or the house will be filled with a child’s laughter.

Today, we pray and trust Him.

RESOURCES

For more hope and inspiration, check out these books by Jackie M. Johnson:

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