DON’T FIGHT ALONE: How Isolation Keeps Us Stuck in Anxiety and Why Community Helps Us Win Mental Battlesنموونە

Have you ever seen the movie Cast Away starring Tom Hanks? It's one of his best performances. In it, he plays a FedEx employee stranded on a remote island after his plane crashes.

In one of the film's most emotional moments, Hanks loses "Wilson," a volleyball with a painted face that became his only companion on the island. The scene is heartbreaking because it captures something deeply human: our desperate need for connection.

Many of us can relate to that loneliness. We understand what it's like to have somebody we counted on suddenly gone. Maybe there was one person we were close to who moved away. Maybe there was someone we thought we could trust who hurt or betrayed us. Or perhaps there was someone we were leaning on, and they didn't realize how much their words meant to us until they spoke words that hurt us deeply.

For many of us, the most challenging part of winning the battle in our minds is that we're trying to do it alone. A few years ago, I surveyed my email subscribers, and over 60% of the people there indicated that their loneliness was at a seven or higher (on a scale of 1-10). That’s too high!

At one point, I was as isolated as Tom Hanks. While I wasn’t stranded on a remote island or talking to a volleyball, no one knew what I was going through inside. While people surrounded me and my calendar overflowed with activities, I felt lonely and discouraged.

Over a few years, I realized the danger of this approach to life. I made significant shifts and learned big lessons I’m excited to share with you in this plan.

The biggest lesson is the big idea of this plan: If we want to win the battle in our minds, we will have to fight together.

We tend to remove the word "together" and replace it with "alone." We've been fighting the battle for many of us, but we've been fighting it by ourselves. And if we're going to win it, we're going to have to fight it together.

In Romans 12:2, Paul writes, "Don't be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind." This is where the battle occurs—in our thoughts, perspectives, and internal dialogue. But interestingly, immediately after writing these words, Paul begins talking about community and how we function as one body with many parts.

That's because Paul understood something crucial: We cannot win this battle alone. We need each other. As Proverbs 27 reminds us, we make each other better and stronger!

Like Tom Hanks' character desperately clinging to Wilson, we all need connection. But unlike a painted volleyball, God has given us real people to fight alongside us.

Tomorrow, we'll explore the fear that prevents us from stepping into community with others.