Home Alone
Pastor Victor Massey
Part of Keep Moving Forward—2024 Vision
December 3, 2023

Psalm 25:16, NIV
Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and afflicted.

Psalm 102:4-7, NLT
My heart is sick, withered like grass, and I have lost my appetite. Because of my groaning, I am reduced to skin and bones. I am like an owl in the desert, like a little owl in a far-off wilderness. I lie awake, lonely as a solitary bird on the roof.

Psalm 142:4, NKJV
Look on my right hand and see, for there is no one who acknowledges me; refuge has failed me; no one cares for my soul.

Causes of Loneliness at Home:
• Hurt
• Conflict
• Selfishness
• Loss
• Isolation
• Communication

The Need for Reconciliation

Romans 12:18, NIV
  If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.

1. I will get back to, not get back at.

John 3:16-17, NKJV
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son int0 the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.

2 Corinthians 5:18-19, NLT
And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ. And God has given us this task of reconciling people to him. For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation.

2. I will own my slice of the blame pie.

Matthew 7:3-5, NLT
“And why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye when you have a log in your own? How can you think of saying to your friend, ‘Let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye? Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye.

3. I will make the first move regardless of who moved away first.

Matthew 5:23-24, NLT
Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.

4. I will keep the door open and the welcome mat out.

Luke 15:20-24, NLT
“So he returned home to his father. And while he was still a long way off, his father saw him coming. Filled with love and compassion, he ran to his son, embraced him, and kissed him.” His son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against both heaven and you, and I am no longer worthy of being called your son.’ “But his father said to the servants, ‘Quick! Bring the finest robe in the house and put it on him. Get a ring for his finger and sandals for his feet. And kill the calf we have been fattening. We must celebrate with a feast, for this son of mine was dead and has now
returned to life. He was lost, but now he is found.’ So the party began.

2 Corinthians 5:20-21, NLT
So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!” For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ.

Psalm 27:10, NLT
Even if my father and mother abandon me, the Lord will hold me close.