Hey there lonely girl

Then the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone….” Genesis 2:18a

I’ve always been proud of the fact that I can be a loner. I know, what a weird thing to be proud of. But hear me out. I don’t have an issue with eating a meal by myself or with being by myself for long periods of time. You see, I am an introvert, always have been. I admire those who enjoy going to social events and seem to thrive, and even get energy, from that. I am not one of those people. I think twice before I have to go to a social event, especially if I don’t know many people there. I enjoy being alone.

I know, like me, there are many people who prefer to be alone. Others, are lonely not necessarily by choice. According to a Harvard study, one of three people believe that they have needs in their life and no one to meet those needs.The thing is, we weren’t made to be alone. God realized that it was not good for man to be alone. We need community, relationships, and friends.

I think it’s okay to enjoy time alone once in a while. The danger comes when we isolate ourselves. When we settle for a life that lacks intimacy and connection with people around us.

Engaging in relationships can be risky. Relationships can get messy. But that’s the beauty of it. Because it is in relationships where we can really get to know someone. It is when we do life together that we get to see the good, the bad, and the ugly. It is there where we get to see our vulnerabilities and our heart. But it is also where we can be there for one another. Where we can pray for each other, and share in the pain and joy of our lives.

Do you have a core group of people that you can trust? People that you can call and you know they can pray with you or for you. People that can listen, people that can share in your pain and joy. If you do, make sure that you are nurturing those relationships. If don’t have a good group of friends around you, what can you do to change that? It’s important that we take proactive steps to change the circumstances in our lives.

In my case, there’s two specific things that I am doing. I joined a Community Group at my church. This is a group that meets consistently to talk about different topics, pray, and share. The second thing is, as a family, we are opening our home and inviting friends and neighbors to come and share a meal with us.

Let’s learn to do life together.