Loneliness

Recently I heard someone in authority say loneliness defines who we are.  Because so many of us suffer from it, we must turn to God and each other.  He said God gave us himself and others to combat this deep suffering.  What a misuse of the purpose of God.

Loneliness is real.  It keeps us up at night, draws us to one another, seems to lay like a stone in the deep pit of our hearts.  But it is not the reason God gave us himself and each other.  To say that would completely disregard the gospel.  God gave himself up for us not because we are lonely.  He did not give us a husband or wife or close friend so we would not be alone.  He did not die on the cross to eradicate deep despair over our isolation.  Although, I believe to be away from God is to be lonely, I do not believe it is the reason for His existence.  Nor do I believe it is the reason he created other people who love us.

God exists for Himself.  He died on the Cross and resurrected from the dead to save us, yes, but He did it not for our comfort, but for his glory. To say He exists to meet the depth of our loneliness would be to say he exists to serve us.  He will meet the depth of our loneliness, but it is not His primary purpose.

God created humans for His glory-not our comfort.  We are lonely not because we Should have someone to love us, but because we don't seek fellowship with our creator.  The nature of our sinful hearts tend toward self sufficiency and so loneliness it a result of that.  God is the cure.  People are gifts, but not meant to be the missing piece to our fractured hearts.  There is only one who can fill the God-sized hole in our hearts.  He created us to be dependent on Him.

To preach loneliness as the natural state of our souls is accurate.  But we can't stop there.  We can't look to one another or even to God to be the bandaid to that loneliness.  We must start by rejecting the image of God creating us for us.  He did not make Himself and other people to meet our needs.  He made Himself for Himself.  He made us for Himself.  And he made others for Himself.   In Genesis God created Adam and then, on the sixth day, Eve-because He didn't think man should be alone.  However,  to assume that all people are created to meet this need in one another is a distortion.  After they were both created, they sinned.  That is where the separation from God entered creation.  It is there that the loneliness of humanity took hold.

God came first.  Then our sin.  Then came the loneliness.

When God choses us to know Him and follow Him as disciples, He gives us His Holy Spirit which enables us to turn from our love affair with self.  We must reject the notion that all things are for us to use and fill the void.  The void is there because without God, we are lonely and no one but He can cure it.  And He will cure it when we realize our purpose is to live for, through, and in Him.

"For my grace is sufficient for you.  My power is made perfect in weakness."  2 Corinthians 12:9