Description:

Our objective is to bring to the surface feelings of aloneness that men experience and to help them better understand them and deal with them.

Message from Marsh: “Blessing on each of you who will better understand your own aloneness and continue to be confident in God.”

Marsh

Founder/President

Thank you for coming to: mensgroup.org

CRITICAL ISSUES for Men

Lesson 5 – Aloneness

(www.mensgroup.org – “Original Study”)

PRAY: A suggested opening prayer for small group members or individuals to invite God to connect as we seek Him in his Word. Feel free to add your own words, “in prayer.”

Father, we know that you are always by our side, that you will never leave us nor forsake us. However, we feel alone sometimes. Help us to understand where aloneness comes from and how we can deal with it.

OPENING QUESTIONS:

1. When have you felt alone?

2. How long did it continue?

SCRIPTURE PASSAGE:

I cry aloud to the Lord; I lift up my voice to the Lord for mercy. I pour out before him my complaint; before him I tell my trouble. When my spirit grows faint within me, it is you who watch over my way. In the path where I walk people have hidden a snare for me. Look and see, there is no one at my right hand; no one is concerned for me.
I have no refuge; no one cares for my life. I cry to you, Lord; I say, You are my refuge,
my portion in the land of the living. Listen to my cry, for I am in desperate need; rescue me from those who pursue me, for they are too strong for me. Set me free from my prison, that I may praise your name. Then the righteous will gather about me because of your goodness to me (Psalm 142).

LESSON:

After David’s successful encounter with Goliath and his developing friendship with Jonathan, King Saul’s son, there came a time when King Saul became convinced that David was trying to take his throne. Saul sent out scouts to search for David and even local people betrayed David’s position to the king.

David moves deeper into wilderness areas with his six-hundred-man fighting force. If not for occasional help from supporters, this rag-tag army would go hungry. Even in the good times of meals, David feels alone and discouraged. He is responsible for a large and loyal army and that pressure, plus the promise of kingship in the past given by God through Samuel, led him to wonder about his future. He desired rescue and felt in desperate need of protection from God.

David went to God and poured out his complaint, all the trouble he was in. His spirit grew faint, he must watch for snares, he felt no one was concerned for him. There was no refuge where he was safe, he must move continuously to avoid detection.

For David, on top of the burden of lost relationships with family and friends, he must hide out in places large enough to protect his men and himself and at the same time be safe from the eyes of King Saul’s scouts. This psalm is identified as the time when he was in the cave of Adullam.

Those attracted to David while he was in this pain were his brothers and his father’s household and all sorts of men who were distressed, debt-ridden, and discontented. This would not be an easy group to please. However, David did not allow their situations to affect him negatively. He responded by finding protection for his family with the King of Moab so that he didn’t have to worry about them (1 Samuel 22:3-4). He kept on defeating the enemies of Israel, the Philistines, giving those around him a new sense of victory and enthusiasm (23:2-13). David kept his view outward, as much as possible.

He admits his need and calls out to God (Psalm 57:1-5). He has a teachable spirit as he reflects on his understanding of God. He is the one who watches over him. He is the one who is his refuge and it is God who can set him free. And what does God do? He responds by sending a messenger to King Saul as he rides to intercept David which causes him to cut off the chase and return to fight marauding Philistines (1 Samuel 22:26-28).

God helps David with his feelings of aloneness by keeping his army focused on important battles to protect Israel. David personalizes God’s goodness to him and resets his mind to believe that God will take care of what he needs. He believes.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

1. How much of what is transpiring in David’s life is his fault?

2. When have you been as honest as David was in Psalm 142:1-4?

3. What further thoughts do you have concerning this Psalm?

APPLICATION:

1. Thinking of your personal experiences of aloneness, how often did you end up praising God in them?

2. What would it take for you to be more like David and less like yourself?

3. How will you integrate this story into your life during alone times?

CLOSING PRAYER:

Father, we go through periods of dryness in our lives. We feel alone and discouraged. But we must come to you for strength and solace for our inner being. We must trust you when it is dark and we must praise you like Paul and Silas did in prison. Help us out of our aloneness but focusing on you and not ourselves.

Suggested Additional Resources:

David Crowder, along with three others, wrote and performed a powerful song that encourages us in our aloneness entitled, God Really Loves Us. Find it on YouTube at https://youtu.be/yG-Y9bWlCw8 and play it for the group.

Continue to Lesson 6 – Devotion to God

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