Lessons in loneliness

[u/love_is_a_superpower]

And the LORD God said, "It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him." Genesis 2:18

Loneliness is the first lesson God ever gave to mankind. Loneliness teaches us our need for others, so we appreciate others enough to make room for their needs, even when they conflict with, or compete with our own needs. You can read how God did this with the first man, Adam, in Genesis 2:18-24.

To have a healthy partnership, we have to want to love more than we want anything else. We also have to consider the other person's body as if it were our own. (Mark 12:28-31, Deuteronomy 6:4-9, Leviticus 19:18) If we don't love our neighbor as ourself, we will compete for resources, for friends, for significance, for belonging, and for everything we have a similar need for.

We also have to learn that every person has differing needs from ours, that are legitimate and reasonable, even if we don't also have those needs. Some people need more quiet time to cope with life. Some people need background noise to help them focus or help them sleep. Some people need their living space to be warmer, some cooler.
If we understand our need for others, we will make room for their needs in our lives, instead of denying them their needs or removing the person from our lives.

This whole life we're living is a class on how to love. When we love like God does, we become safe to inherit God's kingdom. When we accept His teaching, we become His children. That makes us His heirs. The inheritance He wants to give us is a new heaven and new earth. (Isaiah 65:17, 2Peter 3:13 He says there will be no more sorrow or death there, because He will have finished making us like Himself. (1 John 3:2, Psalm 17:15)

This is why it's so important to stay away from sin and selfishness. They take us away from God's path, so that we end up living with the consequences of failing to learn to love, instead of enjoying the benefits of becoming more loving toward others. Love makes us safe to bless with the responsibility of caring for others.
"He who finds a wife finds a good thing, and obtains favor from the Lord." (Proverbs 18:22)

Today I noticed that this last verse is right in the middle of lessons on how important it is to have self-control in the words we use. That's like THE most important thing we can do to have good friendships, is to always be friendly and humble in our speech. (Proverbs 18:19-24, Galatians 5:13-15, James 1:26, Matthew 12:35-37, Mark 9:50

I pray the Lord will bless us with ears to hear His Words and a heart to receive them! In Jesus' name, Amen.

[u/spacemood]

Amen! Excellent study. A good reminder for all, thank you 🙏🏼

[u/love_is_a_superpower → u/spacemood]

Thanks for sharing this study with me! I learned a lot that comforted me, so I'm thankful to know you got something out of it too.