Lonely vs. Part of a great family

Loneliness hurts. It comes at strangely unexpected times, when you’re in a crowded tube carriage, nestled in a pew at a friend’s wedding or disappointed with the self-care night you’ve been looking forward to all week. It takes hold when we’re uninspired, unmotivated and when our social battery is running low. These moments feed the insecurity we have about our singleness. We start on a cycle of “if only”... “if only I had a partner”, “if only she liked me”, “if only I’d gone on that second date”.

But Paul shows us here that the solution to our loneliness is not in the arms of another human. He writes that ‘there is one body and one Spirit… one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.’ Friend, God did not design us to be lone wolves. His church has been built on the foundation that by the blood of Jesus we are all united as one. This means that whenever you stand amongst a group of Christians, you are home, you are experiencing a taste of what heaven will be like: ultimate companionship, inexistent loneliness.

So the warm advice which follows from Paul’s assertion of the ‘oneness’ of the Christian Church is that we should live as part of this great family. There is a whole group of people who you will spend eternity with… knowing them, loving them, serving them now, will relieve so much of the emptiness we feel when we lack human connection. Make new friends, reconnect with old ones, invest in them wholeheartedly. Find joy in giving and receiving love.

Action points

1. If you’re already at home in a church then get more stuck in, join a mid-week group, volunteer to help with creche.
2. If you’re not in a church already then start a Church search! It will be tiring but 100% worth it and you will make lots of new friends, guaranteed.
3. Bring people together for food. Honestly, it works. Host a meal, plan a picnic, invite a couple of friends to your favourite independent coffee shop. When you take charge of a social event you will instantly feel the warmth and gratitude of everyone you invite.