A thought by Ed Young, from his book, The Fear Virus: Vaccinating Yourself Against Life's Greatest Phobias (p.73). Creality Publishing. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)
Maybe you're one of them or you know someone who is.
Ed says, “Ironically, we are not alone in feeling alone, but when fear comes in and whispers, ‘You are alone, no one cares, no one has experienced what you’ve been through,’ we feel utterly isolated.
He goes on, “In the midst of the pandemic, we were told to self-quarantine. For a lot of people this made their fear of loneliness rise to the surface. God made us to be relational; He put those longings in us. While desiring relationships is good, fear of loneliness can cripple us and cause us to act in unhealthy ways. When our hearts feel broken with longing and fear of loneliness, we must remember that with God, we are never truly alone. He understands us better than we understand ourselves, He loves us more than we love ourselves.
“Even in the midst of people, and sometimes especially in a crowd, our loneliness is magnified. When we find ourselves at a crowded restaurant or a crowded church, looking at people connecting and interacting while we are passed by or overlooked, we feel broken, like we’re missing something. As we skim through Instagram or Facebook, we may actually feel more lonely, distant, and isolated as we peer into the lives of hundreds or even thousands of ‘friends.’ We even have to ask ourselves, ‘Has social media actually created a world that is more relational?’ Sadly, more often than not the answer is no. ‘Social’ does not necessarily equal relational or meaningful.”
He says, Our tethered connection to technology often keeps us from relating to others because we no longer have to relate to other human beings to accomplish the tasks of day-to-day living. Little do we realize, though, as we go about our technology-driven existence that by our behavior we are encouraging the very thing we fear most: a life of isolation that is devoid of human contact.
“Technology is not the only culprit. Our attitude towards people often isolates us from them. Whether because of political differences, divergent lifestyles, or generational divides, we are polarized and often prize our pride and egos over genuine connection. We no longer understand what it means to live in true intimacy and community with others. In short, we are a lonely people, and we have no one to blame but ourselves.”
He then says, “Understanding and overcoming the fear of loneliness is critical to living the abundant Christian life. Larry Crabb says it well in his insightful book Understanding Who You Are: ‘Life in Christ is all about relationships, with God, with others, and ourselves. When we reduce Christianity to a series of steps for handling life better or a set of truths to believe or a list of things to do, we miss the whole point of the gospel.’ In short, it’s all about relationships. Loneliness is the symptom of some unmet relational need… we must first understand that we will never find ultimate relational fulfillment in any relationship until the relational need with God is met.”
Let’s remember that with God, we are never truly alone. So, will you turn to Him with your loneliness? Will you?
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