So when we could stand it no longer, we thought it best
to be left by ourselves in Athens.
1
Thessalonians 3:1
I found myself back in my
hometown in my mid-twenties. The friends that I had growing up had moved on.
The people in my Singles class were 5-10 years older than me. Although I
enjoyed the Bible study with them, we did not have much in common otherwise.
To say that I was lonely
was an understatement. I had been living in a large costal city in South
America where life was noisy and busy. I had made many friends there. Being
back in a small quiet East Texas town was not really my idea of a good
time.
One night, in desperation
I got out my Bible, let it open wherever it landed, and stuck my finger on a
verse. That’s when I discovered 1 Thessalonians 3:1. When I read it, I just had
to laugh for although I was not stuck in Athens, Greece with Paul, I WAS stuck
in Athens -- Athens, Texas.
I felt like God had put
that verse in the Bible just for me. I had felt alone, but had not considered it
necessarily “best.” After recovering
from my laughter I realized that sometimes He does need us to be “left by ourselves” so that He can speak
to us and teach us the lessons that we need to learn. Sometimes we just need to
be quiet and, yes, quite frankly, alone.
My lesson for that season
of life was that God had his eye on me. He knew exactly where I was. He was
with me every step of the way and would reveal the next step of my life when He
thought me ready for that information.
I have always tried to
remember that lesson and to seek out His presence when lonely.
I also always smile when I
read 1 Thessalonians 3:1, “my” verse.
Lord, thank you for seeking us out
in our alone times so that we can spend more time with You.
Susan P.
No comments:
Post a Comment