Sometimes I feel that the natural state of man is to feel restless and alone. That is not to say that we always feel both together, alone and restless. Or that we always feel one or the other. It’s just that I often feel one or the other or both. I sometimes have these feelings when they make no sense.
I have felt alone in a crowded room as well as on a solitary walk. I have felt restless when that might be better described as boredom, nothing to do, as well as when my to-do list was as long as my arm. I could be “alone” in these feelings, but I don’t think so. As I’ve written recently, depression is epidemic and it seems depression, restlessness and the sense of being alone, all march together.
I can hear some readers saying, “You just need to get out more.” (It’s a great gift to be able to hear readers even before words are read or even written. ) I should say that this condition is not, at least in my case, caused by a lack of loving human relationships. My wife and family are great. I have good friends and fellow Jesus followers with whom I can relate. I “get out” as often as I want or need.
Jesus seemed to recognize this “natural” state. His greeting and prayer for his disciples was “Peace” which is really the absence of restlessness. His promise was that he would never leave us or forsake us, that, in spite of how we might feel, we would never really be alone.
Like many things in life that seem, at first, negative are actually great gifts from God. Our feelings of aloneness in a crowd is really Him calling us to spend time with Him. Our restlessness in the midst of busyness is His reminder that maybe what we are so busy doing, is not what He calls us to do and, therefore, maybe not what we should be doing.
Augustine was a pretty smart guy, evidenced by his words, “You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it rests in you.”
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