At Lo Levad – We are Not Alone

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I love NCIS. My hubby kids me and calls Tuesday nights at 8 pm the “holy hour.”  Don’t call me when there is a new show on. I won’t be nice.

CBS NCIS
Last week’s episode showed a tender moment between two of the characters that lingered with me. As Ziva gets ready to fly to Israel, Tony hugs her and says something in her ear in Hebrew. She smiles and says, “I know.”
What did Tony say?
At lo levad – You are not alone.
You are not alone.  How we all hunger to hear that. I think many of us desperately want to believe that. This world can be a tough place where we often feel lost.  There is hope and renewal in hearing:

You are not alone.
Reminded me of the beloved 23rd Psalm:
The Lord is my shepherd; I lack nothing.
He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul.

He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake.
Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil,

For you are with me; 


Your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me
 in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
Surely your goodness and love will follow me
 all the days of my life,
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
For you are with me


Alone – solitary, apart from others.
For a writer, time alone is a great. Time undisturbed to focus, to create, to doodle and wander through words.
For an introvert, time alone is necessary. People drain us and we refuel our hearts and energize our spirits in time spent away from others.
For a part of me, time alone is loneliness. The phone doesn’t ring; I miss my parents and friends departed; my ego questions its value and self-doubt pokes fun at my unworthiness.
Did you know the etiology of the word alone is from the old English – al one – meaning all one?
Now that doesn’t sound lonely to me. To be all with One is a powerful comforting concept.
I read this well-known and loved psalm last week and paused at the line – for you are with me.
What a gift – God is always with us. We are not alone. Ever.
God, the good Shepherd, is saying these same words to each of us – “At lo levad.”
We are not alone.
We are all with One.
My mind cannot fully grasp the full meaning that God Himself, the King, the Great Shepherd, the Creator of all – spends His every moment being with us. 
And not because He has to… because He wants to.
We are not alone. He is with us.

All I can do is respond like Ziva, smiling and humbly whisper, “I know.”

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Comments

  1. blankJean Wise says

    So glad to meet up with another NCIS fan. I did thai Cindy for linking us up. You have a great blog that I am now getting by email. Glad to find you!

  2. blankJean Wise says

    Oh, do watch NCIS sometime, I found the characters really grow on you after a while and their humor is delightful. Thanks for coming over from SITS

  3. blankJennifer_StudioJRU says

    I love this post, Jean! NCIS caught my attention while looking through your blog… thanks to Cindy sharing it on my ‘it’s a small world blog hop’! I wondered what Tony said! That is so beautiful… thanks so much for sharing! 🙂

  5. blankJean Wise says

    I thought it was a very powerful emotional episode and one of the best ones. I had to look up what he said and when I learned what it meant just know I had to blog about it. Thanks for stopping by!

  9. blanksoulstops says

    Okay, I am duly warned to not call you on Tuesday nights…(wink)…I miss watching NCIS…we lost the station when TVs became digital and we have never had cable…Guess what? Read Ps 23 today, and I love the history behind the word…You made me smile when I read your comment…always happy to brighten a friend’s day 🙂

  10. blankJean Wise says

    I knew this post would bring out other NCIS fanatics. Yes yes Mark Harmon is the greatest and really does make the show. I enjoy all the characters. Thanks for stopping by and commenting

  13. blankMichelle Eichner says

    How cool about the etiology of the word “alone”!! Never knew. Thanks for sharing. Btw, I’m a fellow NCIS fan, too!! Just don’t get to watch it as much as I’d like. I knew you were WISE!! 🙂 Love ya!

  14. blankSharon O says

    I like that show too and the characters and of course Mark Harmon is not bad either :o) He is one of those guys that aged well like Sean Connery.
    Love that you can make a ‘blog post’ about it.

  15. blankMia De Vries says

    Hi Jean
    Thank you sooo… much, dear one! I suffer from a debilitating chronic disease that keeps me quite house bound a lot of the time and it can get lonely. I have started a blog and it helped quite a lot. Yet, at times we all need arms to hold us and ears to listen and knowing that our Pappa God does all this with great pleasure is always the anchor of my soul!
    Much love XX
    Mia