Charles Stanley - Living In The Shadows Of Loneliness

Loneliness is an epidemic in our culture. This isn’t just something that only affects those who live in isolation; it’s present in people who live in families, work with others, and have friends. Some lonely people have everything money can buy, but all their luxuries can’t provide what’s missing. Many times those who suffer from loneliness don’t even know why they feel this way. From the outside, their lives look fine, but inside they are enclosed in a shadow of loneliness.

A shadow replaces the light of the sun for a period of time, but it is usually momentary. However, when a shadow of loneliness lingers for a long time, it becomes the atmosphere in which some people live. It’s like being in a dense fog that leaves them feeling disconnected from others. This is accompanied by a sense of isolation, unimportance, emptiness, purposelessness, incompleteness, or inadequacy. People who are generally happy are content with their relationships and feel a sense of belonging and satisfaction, but those who live in the shadow of loneliness are unable to find satisfying relationships on a human level and end up feeling abandoned. Although loneliness may seem like an inescapable condition, it’s possible to get through it and even conquer it when one is willing to be honest with himself and God.