Bible Reading: Genesis 2:15-25
It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a companion who will help him. Genesis 2:18
I’M SO LONELY I can hardly stand it. I want someone to care about me. I can’t remember anyone smiling at me or wanting to be with me. I feel so empty inside.
I hate going home. My parents constantly fight with each other. The tension is awful. If I do anything wrong, they jump on me. When I go to my friend’s house, it’s just the opposite. Everybody is friendly. They laugh and joke at the supper table. Why can’t my family be like that? Why do I have to feel lonely whenever I go home?
I’d really like to have a better relationship with Jesus. Everybody at church talks about “knowing” him and how close they feel to him, but I don’t feel close to him at all. I try to read my Bible and pray, but it doesn’t help. Is something wrong with me? I wish I could have Jesus for a friend because I don’t have anyone else to talk to.
Ever had any of those thoughts simmer in the back of your brain? Or ever have someone come to you and spill those feelings?
You might claim you never feel lonely. But most students ache for a friend who lets them say anything-about their ideas, dreams, or problems. They want someone who makes them feel good about themselves, glad to be who they are.
God made you to enjoy relationships with others. When he created Adam, God made a perfect person. Yet he said, “It is not good for the man to be alone” (Genesis 2: 18). Then he created Eve from Adam’s rib to provide ultra-close, intimate companionship with him. See it? Friendship and companionship are normal, healthy needs everyone has. That’s how God built you.
But even before Adam had Eve, he had God. The first way the Lord wants to meet your need for close friendships is by helping you get close to him. From the beginning, God pursued a relationship with humankind. After Adam and Eve were created, God enjoyed coming to the Garden of Eden to talk with them. That hasn’t changed today. The ultimate solution to loneliness is knowing Jesus Christ. Only a real, meaty, daily friendship with Jesus Christ-the ultimate Friend-will satisfy your inner craving to be loved.
You need people. But you need Jesus most of all.
REFLECT: Are you enjoying an intimate friendship with Jesus Christ, your dearest friend? How would you like to get closer to him?
PRAY: Talk to Jesus today about the kind of relationship you want with him.
