Lunchtime in Rome

Everyone is having a great time. They're laughing, playing, talking. It's almost a cliche' the way each person is interacting. That is, everyone but you. You are on the outside. You are not part of "the group." You are watching, not participating.

What am I talking about? What part of life am I referring to? I'd love to know what you're thinking. As it is, I'm talking about school. Do you remember how alone you "might have" felt at school? From first grade through college, loneliness lurks. For 90%of you, this is kind of after the fact. But what about our loved ones? Our children, nieces and nephews, and the kids of our friends are facing this right now. How can we help them?

Get full access to Lunchtime In Rome Podcast at www.lunchtimeinrome.com/subscribe

You stand there. You're surrounded by tens or even hundreds, if not thousands, of people. You've all chosen to come to this place. You, in theory, believe the same things. You have many things in common with all of these people and yet, you feel alone.

No, we're not talking about a sporting event. We're talking about your place of worship. Alongside your family, this is the one place your should NEVER feel alone...right? Well, sadly, it's not rare.

Get full access to Lunchtime In Rome Podcast at www.lunchtimeinrome.com/subscribe

Being alone is one thing. You know, when you ARE alone. You live alone, your family is far away, you just don't have anyone. However it's another, far worse, thing when you FEEL alone despite NOT being alone...at home. You have family, you have a spouse, there are others, but you feel alone.

Get full access to Lunchtime In Rome Podcast at www.lunchtimeinrome.com/subscribe

The phrases, "Who am I?" or "I have to find myself" can be a bit overused and even a bit annoying but they are real. However, the truth is, some of us have struggled with who we are. Maybe you're the "life of the party" but what do you have to sacrifice in order to be that identity? Maybe, you're the "one that's always there for everyone" but no one ever cares for you. Maybe you've been "that" guy/girl your whole life. Whatever "that" is, the fat kid, the slow kid, the annoying kid...maybe you've felt imprisoned in that identity and you feel...alone.

Get full access to Lunchtime In Rome Podcast at www.lunchtimeinrome.com/subscribe

There's nothing better than when you love and like who you work with. The 8 to 10 (or more) hours go by so much more quickly. You can actually look forward to work! However, there are times and there are jobs where that is not the case. Sometimes we don't like the people we work with. Other times we don't work with people at all. What can we do to not feel so alone in those times? What can we do to help others not feel so alone? We'll be talking about this tonight!

Let us know how you have felt alone at work or what you've done to help others!

Get full access to Lunchtime In Rome Podcast at www.lunchtimeinrome.com/subscribe

Sin. We've all done it, we all do it. Only the clinically deranged (I'm not sure that's the most ok term) have no problem that they do it. We all feel bad. We wish we wouldn't continue to miss the mark. However, sometimes people try to "help" us stop sinning. Their intentions are honorable (most often), but the result is we end up feeling alone in sin. Should we have company in sin? Clearly not. However, we should not be left alone or to feel worse for them. Or, maybe if we left "the sinner" alone, more people would change?

Get full access to Lunchtime In Rome Podcast at www.lunchtimeinrome.com/subscribe

I've heard of this far too often. Ironically, in the recent years of social media maybe it's less, but it still happens. Tragedy hits, your life turns upside down, and boom, you're alone. The ones you thought would be there for you are not. Groups of people you depended upon don't call, don't ask, even disconnect. Sometimes, other people step up. Other times, no one does. Has this happened to you? I sure hope not but imagine it might have for many of you. If so, would you let us comfort you by sharing your story? We'll be talking about that type of being alone this week.

Get full access to Lunchtime In Rome Podcast at www.lunchtimeinrome.com/subscribe

Alone in good times.

We've focused a lot on comfort. We've taught a lot about how to come alongside someone when things aren't going well. However, if we are to love people, we need to join them in the good times as well.
Have you ever felt alone when things were good? Have you ever looked around for someone to celebrate with and found no one there? If you feel ok sharing, please do!

Get full access to Lunchtime In Rome Podcast at www.lunchtimeinrome.com/subscribe

Sometimes when we are hurt over a long time we go one of two ways. We can simply detach from our emotions for someone. They live? Great. They die? Whatever. You are the same either way. The other is being enmeshed. Roles are confused, feelings intertwined. What are the ramifications of this? How does this happen? We'll be talking about that this week?
Have you grown numb to someone in your world? Are or were the hurts just too much? Have you experienced enmeshment? If so, and if you care to share, please let us know.

Get full access to Lunchtime In Rome Podcast at www.lunchtimeinrome.com/subscribe

What's worse than being sad? What's worse than anxiety? What's worse than depression? Going through these very serious things...alone. We're going to talk about that this week. Do you experience this? What comes with that? How do you get by? What helps? What hurts?

Get full access to Lunchtime In Rome Podcast at www.lunchtimeinrome.com/subscribe