Loneliness

“Solitude is the profoundest fact of the human condition. Man is the only being who knows he is alone"
--Octavio Paz

I was lonely yesterday. In my sojourn among the homeless of skid row, I've spent alot of time alone--perhaps more time than I've ever spent in my life. I love people--love connecting with people, smiling and laughing with them. Yet, I've come to realize that my times with people are worthless unless I know what it means to be alone. So I'm grateful for God is teaching me through these days--that when I'm lonely, He is the only one who really can satisfy my hunger for appreciation and praise and company. I still remember towards the end of my time in the Servant Partners internship when my intern director, Kevin Blue, mentioned that loneliness was a common aspect of ministry in the city. And I also remember talking with Brad at a recent wedding that as he gets older, he finds increasingly fewer people who are walking a similar path--not getting caught up in the materialistic flow of western church culture. But last night I talked for a while with a brother who was running from God for three years--and now has seen God answer his prayers as he has given up all to follow. He is going to be teaching kids in Baltimore, starting Monday, and he doesn't even know where he's going to live! God is good :)