What Is A Biblical Response To Loneliness And Grief Of Losing Friends?
Q: What can I do biblically to endure loneliness and handle the grief of friends or a partner leaving and forgetting me? I have God, yes, but losing people hurts so bad when they move on.
A: I don’t know if I have a ready answer or simple fix-it solution for you. I do know that God allows, and sometimes I would even say appoints, times in our life when we endure lonely seasons so that we can really learn to rely on Him alone. Now, I can’t say with confidence to you, “Oh, this is God’s season in your life for that.” Maybe God has an answer for you tomorrow, or an answer right in front of you that you just can’t see yet, whether that be a person or a community of people for you to connect with. Maybe that’s the case.
But I do know this principle is true. There have been times in my life when God has had a divinely appointed season of loneliness, and He had a real purpose to accomplish in it. I would encourage you to pray in this way: “Lord, if You have appointed a lonely season for me, I don’t want to waste a moment of it. Lord, work everything in me and through me that you want to work in this particular season. But also, Lord, give me the eyes to see and the boldness to step out, so that that I don’t miss it when You provide the opportunities for me to connect with more people in a better way and to have friends around me again.” I think that’s a good prayer to pray.
Loneliness is such a painful emotion, so much so that God looked at the first man that He created and knew that if he were to remain by himself, he would experience loneliness. God’s solution was to provide Adam with a mate. Loneliness is such a painful emotion that, ultimately, we will only really know complete satisfaction from having a relationship with Jesus. But He also does provide people in our lives, and it’s good to ask Him to provide.
In the meantime, don’t waste your sorrows. When you find yourself in a painful season, the best place to take that emotion is to the Lord, and to be honest about it with Him. You can pray, “Lord, I’m in pain, not physically, but emotionally. What is the cause of this? Is this something that’s the deficiency in me that I need to find in You? What is it that I need to learn from this time of pain?”