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 Love, Joy, Peace, Happiness, Wonder—are all emotions often connected to Christmas. Throw in the ideas of family, parties, celebration and you have a package of how Christmas is usually communicated.

However, there is another emotion or experience for many people that is connected to Christmas. It is loneliness. Do a web search for “Christmas, loneliness” and you will discover just how much there is about this connection. Now, obviously, there is a lot of loneliness that has nothing to do with Christmas.

We are in what some are calling a “loneliness epidemic.” The headlines from a National Public Radio story declared, “Americans Are a Lonely Lot.”  According to a study this year from health insurer Cigna, “most Americans are considered lonely.”

However, it does appear that the Christmas season exaggerates the sense of loneliness for many people. It has been a common theme of popular Christmas songs over the years such as a 70’s classic: “Lonely This Christmas.” (And no, it’s not Elvis, even though one youtube video says it is.)

So, what is the Christian reaction to this? The Christmas message itself suggests the most important thing. We are not alone. No one is. Jesus’ own words are clear:

“I am with you always.”
“I will never leave you or forsake you.”

Then, we are to reach out in ways that help lonely people. If we look, they are all around us in the obvious places such as nursing homes. They are also among our neighbors and those who are missing a loved one this year or who really have no one. Some, for whatever reason just think, “no one cares.” Let them know Jesus does.

From Messiah's December Newsletter
*Picture is on this web site affairwithcoffee

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