How would you describe what loneliness is? What’s the difference between being alone and being lonely? Join us as we start our new series, “Lonely?” Together with Paul Kiss, we’ll be exploring ideas from 1 Kings 17-19 and Matthew 28:20 on how we can limit loneliness whether alone or in a group.

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Lonely? Alone Without Being Lonely

Speaker: Paul Kiss
Date: February 9, 2020

1 │ Elijah is alone but not lonely

Text: 1 Kings 17:1-74

2 │ Elijah is alone and beginning to feel lonely

Text: 1 Kings 18:22

3 │ Elijah is lonely but not alone

Text: 1 Kings 19:1-18

4 │ Solitude: A way to deal with loneliness

Text: 1 Kings 19:8-9
● Time to sit with your loneliness. Why are you lonely?
● Adjusting perspective. Internal and external causes.
● Solitude builds healthy community.
● “Go back the way you came.” Serving others as a way to dispel loneliness.

5 │ “I am with you”

Text: Matthew 28:20
● Solitude allows us to see how God is present.
● Solitude allows us to see God in others.

Warming Up:

1. How would you describe what loneliness is?
2. What’s the difference between being alone and being lonely?

Discussing and Learning:

3. Read 1Kings 19:1-9. After considering what happens in chapter 18, why do you think Elijah ran away from Jezebel? (Ch. 18 = victory over on Mt Carmel).
4. Elijah isolated himself in the wilderness, 19:3-4. The “solitary broom tree” is even a symbol of his isolation. How was isolating himself feeding into his feelings of loneliness, vs. 10 & 14.
5. Read 1 Kings 17:1-7. Elijah is alone here as well but he wasn’t isolating himself. What is the difference between this passage and the one in 19:1-9?
6. What is the difference between solitude and isolation? How does one benefit us and the other harm us?

Making it Real:

7. On a scale of 1-10, how lonely are you (1= very lonely; 10 = not lonely at all)?
8. How might taking some time to be alone, with your thoughts, and with God, help you overcome your feelings of loneliness?

1. Schedule some time this week to be alone and reflect on your own loneliness or, if you’re not feeling very lonely, reflect on how you could help others who might be feeling that way. Why are you feeling lonely? What needs to change in your life to limit or eliminate that loneliness?
2. Meditate on the following passage. Matthew 28:20. “And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”