Daily Delight
Ever feel like you don’t have any friends – or at least not any close ones?
It can be very humbling to admit feeling like you don’t have healthy friendships in your life or that you don’t have any friendships at all.
Maybe, like me, you’ve found yourself saying things like, “I don’t mind being alone!”, “I’m too shy!”, “I’m too busy!”, “Friends always come with drama!”, or even, “I have Jesus – I don’t need friends!”
These statements present a challenge. Yes, it is very much a blessing to be able to find peace in being alone or in times of silence in our lives! It is a blessing to be able turn to Christ in our times of loneliness and allow Him to replace our emptiness or fear. And we *should* turn to Him, always! But as we turn to Jesus and begin to put Him first in our lives, we will find that we have been invited into a relationship that pulls us out of ourselves.
Being made in God’s image, we are made for love. We are made for relationship, not only with God, but with one another. As part of the Body of Christ, we are called to follow Paul’s invitation in Ephesians 2:19-22 (NIV): “Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of His household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. In Him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. In Him you too are being built together to become a dwelling which God lives by His Spirit.”
This passage reminds us that we are to be community builders for the Kingdom. Rather than wallowing in the confines of loneliness, it is our job to reach out to others and share the love of Jesus with them. If this scares you, I invite you to pray for courage. Pray that God will guide you in taking the first step in inviting someone to start a Bible study, go to coffee, or even just share in a brief conversation about their day!
Take heart, my dear!
About the Author
Hannah Aulbach
Hannah is a 21-year-old college student from St. Louis, MO, currently finishing up her undergrad in Child & Family Development at Missouri State University. She has worked to keep Christ at the forefront during her college experience, and she hopes to inspire other young women to join her on a Christ-driven journey.
Hannah loves serving the Lord through mission work, and she has spent the past two summers as a local missionary sharing the Gospel with children and teens in the St. Louis area. When she isn’t catching up on projects for school, Hannah can be found on Chick-Fil-A runs with friends, hiking new trails, jamming to her favorite praise & worship, working out, or working on a new painting project.
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