We are not designed to live life alone.
For the past year and a half, we have been the target of an ugly enemy designed to separate, isolate and destroy. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see the result that has wreaked havoc on our country, neighborhoods, churches and families.
Think about the things you used to do or the places you used to go. We are living in the change and remaking nearly every part of our lives. Of late, we have been taught to live life in seclusion, quarantine and remoteness, blockaded from the relationships that once breathed life into us.
Estrangement has replaced fellowship, and division has taken the place of togetherness. Facebook, text messages and email are today’s standard, replacing the water cooler, Christmas parties and even family get-togethers.
But God desires to use people to do his will, and he prefers to work through people to accomplish the kingdom’s goals. If the enemy can force you into isolation and separation, he can steal, kill and destroy you. There’s John 10:10 in action.
But God uses people to bring life and bring life abundantly. Jesus sent two disciples to fetch a donkey, God “directed a widow” (1 Kings 17:9) — and ultimately sent a raven — to feed Elijah. From a prostitute and a murderer to a drunk and a womanizer, God seemingly chose the foolish things to confound the wise (1 Corinthians 1:27) time and time again.
You have likely heard a version of this story.
A man lived near a river that was beginning to flood into his neighborhood. The warnings were issued to evacuate and a couple passed in a car and offered the man a ride to safety. “No, the man said. God will take care of me. I’ll be okay.” As the waters rose, a man came by in a boat and offered to take him to dry land. “No, the man said. God will take care of me. I’ll be okay.”
A short time later, the waters rose even further and the man was forced to his rooftop to stay dry and safe. A helicopter flew over and hovered, dropping a ladder to the man. A voice on the loudspeaker encouraged the man to climb up the ladder and he would be safe. “No, the man said. God will take care of me. I’ll be okay.”
Ultimately, the man drowned. When he got to heaven, the first thing he did was inquire of God: “I put all my faith in you, but you did not save me.” God replied: “My son, I sent you a warning and I sent people to you in a car, a boat and a helicopter.”
What car, boat or helicopter has come to help you, and you shunned them? More importantly, what has God asked you to do to help someone? Has God sent you a lifeline, and you refused it? Or has God asked you to be a lifeline, and you didn’t follow through?
Instead of isolating and separating, what would happen if you connected and engaged?
I’ve told this story before, but Elizabeth writes cards to people who God has placed on her heart each month. She prints a photo we have taken and inserts it with a handwritten note of encouragement and inspiration. Some write back, but some cannot read the cards because of illness, but we know they have been read to them — some on their death bed.
We are not designed to live life alone. What can you do right now to be a lifeline?