I’m reading a great book write now that was written by a friend. In it, she says, “If the enemy cannot get you to walk away from God, he will try to get you to walk alone.”
One of the devil’s most effective tactics is to get people alone. Even with Jesus, the devil waited until He was weak with hunger and alone in the wilderness before he tried to tempt Him (Luke 4:1-13). When we are alone, we lose some of our ability to compare what we are feeling and hearing and believing against reality. It’s a comfortable place in some ways because, without anyone with which to compare ourselves, we can feel that we are just fine the way we are, and all of our thoughts and ideas have more merit, no matter how weird or wild they may actually be.
Comparison has come under fire in recent years for good reasons. When we compare ourselves with others, either we never measure up or else we decide that we’re better than everyone else. But without any type of measuring tool, our thoughts, behaviors, actions, and believes can quickly spiral into some pretty weird places.
Am I trying to say that we should run out and find a bunch of friends? No, not really. Being alone is not about being separate from people. It’s a heart-stance that says, “I am alone. I have no one around me.” You can be surrounded by classmates, coworkers, church-goers, neighbors, family, and even friends and still be “alone.”
Walking alone, as my friend points out in her book, is less about people and more about how you walk out your life. Are you hiding so that you’re not seen? Do you share life with at least one other person – often a spouse – in such a way that they know what is happening inside of you and you know what is happening inside of them, at least as far as you and they are able? (I know I’m not the only one with thoughts and feelings that don’t translate to words, let alone logic, very well.) Do you consistently act and react in certain ways that are not like you so that you won’t be judged or stand out from the crowd?
If you find yourself walking alone, the number one thing to do is to begin intentionally walking with Jesus. He said, “I did not come to judge the world” (John 12:47). He said that He would never leave us nor forsake us (Hebrews 13:5). He is here, He understands, and He is not ashamed of you, your thoughts, or your opinions (Hebrews 4:15, 2:11). And best yet, He’s the perfect standard to compare yourself to – not because you should be focusing on the comparison, but because His reality is true reality. By spending time with and walking with Jesus, weird ideas vanish. You’re never alone when you’re with Jesus.
Do we need people, too? Yes, walking with other people can be helpful on many levels. God made us for companionship, and apparently companionship with God wasn’t enough, because God made Eve. Yes, when God realized that Adam needed a companion, He gave him a wife (Genesis 2:18-24). That’s another thought for another day, but it is something to remember in a world where “buddies,” “girlfriends,” and “the guys” are championed as the ultimate in terms of friendship.
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