Tackling the Spirit of Abandonment

John 14:18 "I will not leave you as orphans: I will come to you. Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you."

This morning, as I got ready to attack the day, I kept mulling over the above verse. It's in John 14, where Jesus tells His disciples that He's about to go away, but not to worry. He goes on to tell them about the things that they have to look forward to in heaven and talks to them about the true way to show that you love God. Then He reassures them again about His leaving.

"I will not leave you as orphans-"

That was the phrase I kept hearing in my mind. As I stewed, I thought about something. In the world today, there is definitely an "orphaned spirit" or a feeling of abandonment. It is something that a lot of young adults struggle with.

Lying on my bed, staring at my digital clock, I decided to break it down to extreme simplicity. What is an orphan? Now there are some of you saying, "DUH!" and making rude jokes, but bear with me. I'm going somewhere, I promise!

An orphan is someone without:
~A protector
~A provider
~A teacher
~A leader
~A comforter

Do you feel like you are missing a few of these things? Do you find yourself telling yourself "I don't need anyone to look out for me" or "I can take care of myself"? Do you feel like you are lacking direction? When you cry, is there someone to hold you?

I'm not asking these questions to depress you. I'm asking these questions because I want you to think about what Jesus said. He promised that He wouldn't leave you. Even if you don't have anyone to look out for you, you can have Jesus as your source of comfort, direction, provision, and protection!

Verse 20 "Because I live, you also will live. On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you."

Makes you think of a pregnant woman, right? A pregnant woman provides everything the baby inside her needs. The baby is cradled. The baby is fed. The baby is protected. Everything that the mom has, the baby shares in. He gets nourished right when she gets nourishment. I've been told that the baby actually thinks that his mom is an extention of himself!

That is the vision that I have for my relationship with Jesus. He feeds me. He protects me. He cradles me in His arms and dotes on me. Everything that He has, He has given to me. Because He lives, I also will live! And not the "scraping along, making it day to day" living! No! This is the Son of God talking; when He says I'll live, He means I'll live the abundant life!

As I was growing up, I struggled with feelings of loneliness and abandonment. Don't get me wrong, I have GREAT parents. It's just that the devil is real, the devil is a liar, and sometimes he had me conned. So seeing that God was looking out for my welfare had a big impact on my heart. He loved me and He never left my side. There were times when I didn't let Him help me or comfort me, but in the end, my Father always got His message of love through.

I want to leave you with this verse. It's in the same chapter, so if you wanted to study John 14, I highly recommend it. (Even if you've read this chapter a lot, read it again. The Holy Spirit can show you another side of these verses and bless your heart.)

John 14:1 Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me."

You are not alone. You are the focus of Someone's love and sacrifice. I'm praying that the Lord will help you to more fully understand this!

Love ya,
Samantha