Sunday, April 21
Read Ecclesiastes 4:9-12. What’s the basic idea there? What principle of life is it talking about in general?
Very few of us can make it alone. Even if we are loners and like being alone, sooner or later we not only want some companionship but we might even require it, especially in times of need. We were, indeed, made for community, for fellowship. How fortunate are those who have close family members who can give comfort and support, especially in times of need.
Unfortunately, there are people in our church, where we work, in the communities where we live, who have no one to turn to, not just in their time of need, but even for some conversation at the end of the day. The sense of loneliness can come at any time. “The hardest day for me”, an unmarried man said, “is Sunday. During the week I am surrounded by people at work. On Sabbath I see people at church. But on Sunday I am all alone”.
What principles can we all learn from the following passages, particularly when we may be going through a time of loneliness? John 16:32, 33; Philippians 4:11-13.
Yes, as Christians we have not only the reality of God but the reality of being able to fellowship with God. And we can, indeed, draw comfort from the closeness of God to us. But the closeness of God to Adam, in Eden, didn’t stop the Lord from saying “It is not good that man should be alone” (Genesis 2:18, NKJV). Thus, God knew that Adam, even when he had fellowship with God in a world undamaged by sin, still needed human companionship. How much more, then, do the rest of us need companionship, as well.
We need to be careful, too, from assuming that just because there are a lot of people around, a person cannot be lonely. Some of the loneliest people live in big cities where they often have interaction with others. Just being around other bodies doesn’t mean someone cannot feel alone and alienated and in need of fellowship.
It’s not always easy to know who is feeling lonely, alienated, rejected, or just plain hurting and in need of someone, if nothing else, just to talk to. How can you proactively seek to be more sensitive to whomever those people might be?
