The Hole and a Friend

The other day I was really lonely. It was a day like many others. I asked a friend if I could just be around her. She invited me in (she jumped in). While in her presence, we watched several episodes of THE WEST WING. In episode #32 Noël, Leo tells Josh the following story:

"This guy's walking down the street when he falls in a hole. The walls are so steep he can't get out.

"A doctor passes by and the guy shouts up, 'Hey you. Can you help me out?' The doctor writes a prescription, throws it down in the hole and moves on.

"Then a priest comes along and the guy shouts up, 'Father, I'm down in this hole can you help me out?' The priest writes out a prayer, throws it down in the hole and moves on.

"Then a friend walks by, 'Hey, Joe, it's me can you help me out?' And the friend jumps in the hole.

Our guy says, 'Are you stupid? Now we're both down here.' The friend says, 'Yeah, but I've been down here before and I know the way out.'"
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The priest, the doctor...well meaning prayers and fix-it solutions---been there done that. There are plenty of people willing to peek down at me out of interest, and throw something in from afar.

The friend in the story who jumped in...Wow! That's love. That's presence. I need that.

Have you been in the hole before? Do you know the way out? I'll trust you to help me find the way out. I trust that we could find the way out together. Open invitation to anyone who has found him/herself in a deep, dark place alone and gotten out by God's grace. I need you.