Lonely

I want to invite you to open your Bibles with me to Matthew chapter 17, verses 1-8. 1 After six days Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. 2 There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light. 3 Just then there appeared before them Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus. Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you wish, I will put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.” While he was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!” When the disciples heard this, they fell facedown to the ground, terrified. 7 But Jesus came and touched them. “Get up,” he said. “Don’t be afraid.” 8 When they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus.

Today, as we finish our series on 'Defining the Relationship,' I want to share something that's been hitting me hard lately. Here's our big idea for this morning: Sometimes our most defining moments in faith come from our hiding places. Think about that for a second. The very places we run to hide - those moments when we're trying to get away from everything and everyone - often become the exact spots where God does His deepest work in us. You know what's crazy? We all have them - these hiding places. Maybe yours is pulling extra hours at work to avoid dealing with something at home. Maybe it's scrolling endlessly through your phone when life gets overwhelming. Maybe it's just shutting down and going quiet when things get tough. I'll be honest with you - I've got my own hiding places. A vulnerable moments for me is that I spent 4 days this week in a state of loneliness, and i’ Ve been struggling with how to handle it. Where to run…… I’ll tell you what had happened to me, here in a moment….. But what I'm learning, what I really want to share with you today, is that God has this incredible way of turning our hiding places into holy ground. Here's what throws me - even now, standing here as your pastor, surrounded by our church family, sometimes that feeling still creeps in. You can be in a room full of people and still feel completely alone. And You know what's wild? That's exactly what happened to Peter, James and John….on that mountain. There they were, standing in the actual presence of Jesus, and they still ended up face-down, hiding.

I want to do something right now. It's going to take some courage, but even more than that, it requires us to be vulnerable with each other.” A few moments ago, I shared something deeply personal with you - that I’ve struggle with loneliness. You see, real relationships - requires vulnerability. They require honesty. And honesty... well, honesty is always a two-way street. "So I want to ask you something… "If you have experienced loneliness at any point in your life - would you raise your hand? Just keep it raised for a moment... Yes... thank you for your courage. Thank you for your honesty.” Now, with your hands still raised, I want everyone to look around the room. Just look around.” You can lower your hands now…

You know what this tells me? I'm not the only one carrying this weight. You're not the only one either. Here's what just hit me - loneliness isn't my story, and it's not just your story. It's our story. It's a human story. Do know what's crazy? It doesn't matter if you're the teenager in the back row or the grandparent who's been here for decades. Doesn't matter if you've got three dollars or three million in the bank. Loneliness finds us all. And here's the thing that's changing everything for me: Feeling lonely isn't a sign that something's wrong with us. It's proof that we're human.

Heres what’s wild about loneliness…. It's kind of like a master of disguise. It doesn't just walk through the front door and announce itself. No... it sneaks into our lives wearing different masks, using different doors. Shepherding people through their stories, after living my own story, I've noticed there are three ways loneliness tends to show up in our lives. The first one? It comes through circumstances - those moments in life we never asked for... When we lose someone we love, there's this space that opens up inside us. A space that feels impossible to fill. I... I'm walking this truth right now. My oldest brother lost his battle with cancer up in North Carolina this week. HE was only 50 years old. and you know what happened? In the middle of all of it... this deep loneliness just settled in. Like a heavy blanket I couldn't shake off. My heart's been so heavy this week. You See church, that's what circumstances can do to us. Life throws something at us we never saw coming, and suddenly... we find ourselves isolated. Not because we chose it. Not because we wanted it. But because life just... happened. Sometimes the deepest loneliness comes from moments we never asked for. But there's another door loneliness walks through.

The second way loneliness sneaks into our lives? It comes through sin and disobedience. You know what's crazy? When we mess up, when we know we've blown it, our first instinct isn't to run TO God - it's to run FROM Him. Sin and disobedience in our life guides us to push people away. We stop showing up. We dodge calls. We make excuses. 'Oh, I'm just really busy right now.' 'Work's been crazy.' But really? We're hiding. It’s like when someone knock o your door and you hide from them hoping they don’t see you home.. Lets be honest… And here's the crazy part - hiding doesn't fix anything. Actually, it does the opposite. Every step we take away from people, every excuse we make, every time we choose isolation over honesty - we're just pushing ourselves deeper into loneliness. Our PROTECTION becomes our PRISON The very thing we think is protecting us, is actually isolating us.

Now, here's the third door loneliness walks through, and this one might throw you for a loop - sometimes loneliness comes through courage and obedience. Yeah, you heard that right. Sometimes doing the RIGHT thing is exactly what leads to feeling alone. Think about it - standing up for what you believe in? Speaking truth when everyone else is staying quiet? Living out your faith when the world's pushing back? That's not exactly the path to popularity, is it? Sometimes following God's call means walking a path that not many people understand. And let me tell you - that path can get pretty lonely. Jesus understood this… think of his loneliness at the garden… right before the cross. Everyone had fell asleep, and then he was arrested and trialed alone… SOMETIMES THE RIGHT PATH is the LONELY road

You know, after looking at all these different ways loneliness shows up in our lives - through circumstances we didn't choose, through sin we need to face, through courage that sets us apart - it makes me wonder: What exactly is loneliness? I mean, really... what are we dealing with here? At first glance, we might say it's just about being alone - physical or emotional absence. And look at how we typically respond to that: 'I just need to get out more. I need to be more social. I need to be around more people.’ So what do we do? We try all the usual fixes, right? We make the calls. Show up at events. Push ourselves to be more social. And then... something still doesn't feel right. We're surrounded by people, but that empty feeling? It's still there. I saw this all the time when I was working as a middle school librarian. These kids would think if they could just hang out with the 'right' crowd, if they could just be 'popular enough,' the loneliness would disappear. But here's the truth - it doesn't work that way. Because loneliness isn't just about being alone - it's about something much deeper. When we feel lonely, what we're really feeling is pain. A deep, real pain. And not just any pain - it's separation pain. Here's what I'm learning: when we have a separation problem, what we really have is a heart problem. We can try to fix it by filling our rooms with people, but that's like putting a Band-Aid on a broken bone. What we really need is a heart doctor. You know what's amazing about God? He knew we'd have this heart problem long before we did. In fact, there's this incredible passage in Ezekiel chapter 26 that just blows me away every time I read it. Listen to what God says in verse 25: 'I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols.’ Now, catch those two words - impurities and idols. When we run into hiding places, when we choose isolation over connection, it's because there's something deeper going on. There's a heart issue. Those impurities? That's our sin. Those idols? That's our selfish nature - all the things we put before God. But don't miss what comes next - because this is where it gets good. Look at verse 26: 'I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. Think about that promise for a second. God doesn't just clean us up - He gives us a whole new heart. And this new heart? It's not made of stone anymore. It's alive. It's feeling. It's real. But here's the best part - verse 27: 'And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.’ This new heart doesn't just beat differently - it wants different things. Its whole direction changes. Instead of running away from God, it runs toward Him. Instead of hiding from His presence, it seeks it out. Why? Because this heart's deepest desire is for God's word. And who is the Word? Jesus. But let's be honest - where do we usually run? When life gets hard, when shame creeps in, when fear takes over - we run to hide. Why? Because we still have that heart issue. We're still trying to fix a heart problem with human solutions.

This isn't just our story. This heart problem, this loneliness thing, this painful separation - it's been around since the beginning of time. And I mean the very beginning. If we want to understand where all this started, we need to go back. Way back. Picture this - Adam and Eve in genesis had what we're all looking for. Perfect unity with each other. Perfect relationship with God. No isolation. No separation. Life was good! But then... then comes this choice. And I want you to watch carefully how this plays out, because it's the same pattern we still follow today: Choice leads to sin. Sin leads to shame. Shame leads to hiding.

See, when God comes walking in the garden, what's the first thing they do? The exact same thing we do when we mess up - they hide. Not because God changed. Not because His love changed. But because something within them changed. Look with me in Genesis 3:8 tells us - they hid from the Lord. Can you imagine that scene? The same God they used to run TO, they're now running FROM. The same presence that used to bring them joy now brings them fear. Why? Because sin changed how they saw God, even though God hadn't changed at all. They had changed. Let's fast forward to another hiding story - one that hits a little closer to home. The story of Hagar. Picture this woman - Hagar. She's far from everything she's ever known, serving as a maidservant in a foreign land. And not by choice - scholars believe she was a captive of war. Now she's serving Sarah, a woman desperately waiting for God to fulfill His promise of a child. But Sarah gets impatient. And she does something I think we've all done - she decides to help God out. You know what I mean? Those moments when we think we know better than God about how things should work out? So Sarah comes up with this brilliant plan - have her husband Abraham sleep with Hagar. Have a baby through her. Problem solved, right? And Abraham... oh, Abraham. The Bible puts it so simply: 'Abram agreed.' You know those moments when your wife asks you a question and your brain just freezes? Because you know whatever comes out of your mouth next could change the entire course of your day? Yeah... Abraham should've just stayed quiet. Guys you know what I'm talking about… But here's where it gets devastating. Verse 6 tells the story in nine simple words: 'Then Sarai mistreated Hagar; so she fled from her.’ Just let that sink in. Nine words. One broken life. No dramatic description. No detailed account. Just the raw truth - a pregnant woman running into the desert because staying felt worse than dying alone. This isn't just a Bible story - it's a story about what happens when loneliness comes through circumstances we never asked for. When life takes a turn we never saw coming.

Let me tell you about another person who knew something about hiding places - Elijah. Picture this: Elijah's like the heavyweight champion of prophets. He's known for incredible miracles. But he finds out that Queen Jezebel has put a death warrant on all God's prophets. Most of them are hiding, and honestly, who could blame them? But Elijah? He stands up. He's like, 'Nope. We're doing this. Let's have a showdown - your gods versus my God.’ So they're up on Mount Carmel, and it turns into this wild 'My God is better than your God' contest. The prophets of Baal are dancing, shouting, 'Come on, God! Do something!' Nothing happens. And Elijah? He's just standing there, being... well, being Elijah. He's so confident that he starts pouring water all over his altar. I mean, who does that? He's even trash-talking: 'Hey, maybe your God's in the bathroom! Maybe he's on vacation!’ Then Elijah prays one simple prayer - BOOM! Fire from heaven. Game over. Total victory. Everyone's convinced. God wins. But here's where it gets real. After this massive victory, one threat from Jezebel and what does this mighty prophet do? He runs. I kings chapter 19 says, 3 Elijah was afraid, so he got up and fled for his life to Beer Sheba in Judah. He was so scared, the next words say, her left his servant behind.. he was booking it out of there.. The same guy who just called down fire from heaven is now running for his life. The truth is…..Sometimes our biggest victories are followed by our deepest fears.

And then there's Peter. Oh man, Peter. You know Peter - Jesus' right-hand man. The guy who's always first to speak up, first to jump out of the boat, first to make big promises. 'I'll never deny you, Jesus! I'll die with you if I have to!' Peter's that friend who's all in... until he's not. Think about this - the same guy who walked on water, who saw Jesus transfigured, who boldly declared Jesus as the Messiah... what happens when things get tough? He tends to fail… right. He Falls asleep when Jesus needs him most Denies knowing Jesus - not once, not twice, but three times And when Jesus is crucified? Peter goes back to fishing. Fishing! Like, 'Well, that didn't work out, might as well go back to my old life. Peter ran. See, Sometimes the people who speak the loudest end up hiding the hardest.

So, Let me ask you something. What patterns do we see in all these stories of loneliness and fear? First, running and hiding? That's universal. It's what we ALL do. But what if… that thing that made you run, instead to hide, made you run to your solution??

You see, church: Regardless of why a person runs and hides, God still comes near. Psalm 139 says it best - there's nowhere you can go to escape God's presence. Listen to this: 'If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, 10 even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.’

"You know what amazes me about God? No matter where we run, no matter how far we think we've gone, He's already there. And it's not just that He's there - it's how He shows up. Think about this pattern in Scripture: There's Adam and Eve - they've just messed up big time, they're hiding in the garden, covered in fig leaves and shame. And what does God do? He doesn't storm in with judgment. Instead, He comes walking in the cool of the day and asks this tender question: 'Where are you?’ Or take Hagar - she's running away into the desert, pregnant and alone, probably thinking death in the wilderness is better than what she's leaving behind. And who shows up? The angel of the Lord - and many scholars believe this was actually Jesus Himself - finds her and simply asks, 'What's wrong?' Not 'What did you do?' or 'Why did you run?' Just 'What's wrong?’ Then there's Elijah - this mighty prophet who just called down fire from heaven, now running scared from one angry queen. God finds him in a cave and asks, 'What are you doing here?' Not to shame him, but to hear his heart. And Peter... oh man, Peter. After his biggest failure - denying Jesus three times - how does Jesus restore him? With this heart-piercing question: 'Do you love me?’ See the pattern? God doesn't just track us down to drag us back. He pursues us to restore us. His questions aren't about gathering information - He already knows where we are. They're about restoration. They're about relationship. Here's what we're learning in these hiding moments - God's not just finding us... He's wanting to heal us. He starts connecting with our heart the moment He says, 'I'm here, and I'm not leaving you the way you are. David got this. Oh man, did David ever get this. Listen to what he writes in Psalm 40, and I want you to picture this scene: 'I waited patiently for the Lord; He turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; and set my feet upon the rock.’ Notice what's happening here. God doesn't just peer down into David's pit and say, 'Hey, how's the mud down there?' No - He does something much more beautiful. He lifts him out. Cleans him off. Sets his feet on solid ground. That's not just rescue - that's transformation. But here's what stops me in my tracks. Look at what David says at the beginning: 'I waited patiently. Think about that. In his pit. In his hiding place. In this hole of loneliness and separation... what does David do? He waits. Patiently. For the Lord to show up and speak…. That kind of attitude takes a real heart change. Like he understood something we often miss: Sometimes the pit isn't just a place of pain - it's a place of preparation. I think David saw something we often miss. These moments of loneliness? He didn't see them as punishment. These isolated moments weren't dead ends - they were doorways to deeper communion with God. When life got tough, David didn't run away from God - he ran toward Him. Here's what changes everything: When we run into isolation, we're running away from everything, including God. But when we run into solitude, we're running to God. Maybe that's where some of us are right now. Running into isolation, trying to escape everyone and everything. But what if we saw our hiding places differently? What if, like David, we saw them as meeting places? I need someone to hear this today - even in your darkest hiding places, God has never left you alone. Never. Not once. When we think we're hiding from Him, He's actually waiting there to meet us. To pick us up. To love on us. To set our feet on solid ground. The question is... are you waiting and listening for Him, or are you still trying to run from him?

When we return back to the mounting with Jesus and the three…we see this exact pattern play out. The disciples are face-down on that mountain, terrified, overwhelmed by God's glory. And what does Jesus do? Verse 7 tells us: 'Jesus came and touched them.’ What a friend! What an unshakable friend... He doesn't just speak to them - He touches them. Right there in their fear. Right there in their hiding. And then He says something incredible: 'Get up.’ Not 'shape up.' Not 'why are you afraid?' Just 'Get up... and don't be afraid.' And when they looked up, who did they see? Just Jesus. But here's the part that changes everything - verse 9 says, 'As they were coming down the mountain…' Jesus doesn't leave them there in their terror. He doesn't abandon them face-down on the mountain. No - He gets them up, and they walk down together. That's what He does with us. In our moments of isolation, in our seasons of hiding, Jesus comes near. He touches us. He speaks tenderly to us: 'Get up... don't be afraid... and I will walk with you, not just with you, but be in you.’ Church, sometimes our most defining moments in faith come from our hiding places... especially when our hiding places become meeting places with Jesus.

As Peter comes up… What if this moment, right here, became your turning point? What if today was the day you stopped running from Jesus and started running to Him? What if your hiding place became your meeting place? You see, this table before us... I didn't set it. I'm just a servant who prepared it for the Master. And here's what's beautiful about this table - Jesus is the host, not me. I don't hold the guest list. He does. And you know what kind of host Jesus is? He's not standing here saying 'Clean yourself up first.' He's not demanding perfection. He's offering presence. He's saying 'Show up. Just as you are.’ Church, I'm going to say something bold, and I pray it lands in the hearts that need it most: I believe there are people in this room carrying deep wounds. Some of us have been hiding behind our hurts so long, we've forgotten how to come to the table. Some of us are carrying guilt that feels too heavy to bring here. Some of us have been the ones causing pain, and we've been hiding from that truth. But this table? It's not about being worthy - it's about being willing. Willing to let Jesus meet us right where we are. Willing to patiently listen for his voice. This bread and cup - they represent the lengths Jesus went to end our separation. If you're here feeling separated because of circumstances - maybe life has thrown you something you never asked for - then come. Jesus knows what it's like to face circumstances beyond His control. He sweat drops of blood in Gethsemane, asking if there was another way. He knows your pain. Come. If you're here feeling separated because of sin and disobedience - then come with a repentant heart. Jesus' body was broken and His blood was shed precisely for this reason. He died to bridge this gap. To wash away this separation. Repent and come. If you're here feeling separated because of your obedience - because following God has set you apart and left you feeling alone - then come and be strengthened. Jesus knows this road better than anyone. He walked the loneliest path of all - the path to the cross. He felt the isolation of perfect obedience. Come and let Him strengthen you for the journey ahead. This table isn't about the reason for your separation - it's about the One who came to end it. His body, broken on that cross - it wasn't just for what we call the 'big sins.' It was broken for the bitter root growing in your heart. For the walls you've built. For the pain you can't let go of. And His blood? It wasn't just shed for the obvious wrongs. Scripture tells us that 'without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.' But this blood does more than forgive - it restores. It heals. It brings us near when we've wandered far. I want you to hear what Jesus might be saying to you right now: 'This table - it's been set for you. Not because you're perfect. Not because you've got it all figured out. But because I love you, and I want to walk with you out of that hiding place.’ When you're ready... come to the Saviors table. Tell him your heart. Be forgiven and extend it to others. Take the bread and eat. Take the cup and drink. And leave this place carrying not your shame, but His presence.

Father, We come to you right now - not with polished words or perfect hearts, but just as we are. Some of us are hiding. Some of us are hurting. Some of us are carrying wounds so deep we've forgotten how to even name them. But you see us. Right here, in this moment, in this room - you see us. Not our performances, not our masks, but our true selves. The broken parts. The hidden parts. The parts we're afraid to show anyone else. Jesus, we need you. Meet us in our hiding places. Transform our wilderness into meeting ground. Break through our walls of isolation. Remind us that your love isn't dependent on our perfection, but on your grace. Holy Spirit, do what only you can do - whisper hope into our wounded places. Bring healing where we've been broken. Restore what's been lost. We trust you. Not because everything makes sense, but because you are good. In Jesus' name, Amen."

Benediction: "May you leave here knowing you are seen, Not just by eyes around you, But by the One who formed you. May you walk out carrying not your shame, But His grace. May you remember that your hiding place Can become holy ground. And may the God who pursues you relentlessly Hold you, heal you, and lead you home. Go with His peace. *