She died in the church and was buried along with her name. Nobody came.

Posted by Alan Knox on Jul 2, 2012 in blog links, love | 3 comments

The title of this post comes from the same song that Robert (from “Abnormal Anabaptist“) used in the title of his post “All the lonely people, where do they all come from.”

In his post, Robert is thinking about the lonely people in this world – people all around us. And, they really are all around us. If we take the time to pay attention, we’ll see them everywhere.

At one point, Robert writes about a time he began to notice the “lonely people” while he was in the Emergency Room with his daughter:

First, we were alone. We sat there, my daughter and I, and no one interacted with us, really. Now, the receptionist dude at the desk took pity, offered a coloring book and a blanket to my daughter while we waited, but that was his job. And, he was busy so couldn’t dedicate much time to us.

Secondly, we weren’t the only ones alone. I saw children coming in with bruises and broken bones, people with injuries from car accidents, alcohol poisoning and/or a drug OD, fevers, illnesses, injuries, etc. And they all sat in their own little corners. No one talked to them. No one listened to them. No one showed any sense of compassion and humanity to them. “All the lonely people, where do they all come from.”

Interestingly, love and concern for others is the first fruit of the Holy Spirit that Paul mentions. It is the “royal law” according to James. It is a demonstration that we truly love God, according to John. It is the most basic responses of a person who is following Jesus, indwelled by the Holy Spirit, and submitting to God’s will in his/her life.

In spite of love being the most basic response, every author of the New Testament books found it necessary to exhort their readers toward love. Love is the most basic response to God, but also one of the most difficult to follow him in.

Thanks for the exhortation to follow Jesus in loving others, Robert!