Kindly, Kayla

Hi friends!

Something that has been on my heart lately is how lonely it can feel to be a Christian in this world, or how lonely this world can be in general. And I know what you’re thinking: how can you be lonely when there are so many Christians in the world? Hear me out.

Last weekend I went to a conference with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship called Restore and it was life-changing. The pastor, Tyler Burns, talked about loneliness and I just knew it was God at work because I had been thinking about this exact topic for a while.

The first message he talked about was titled “Spirit of Loneliness.” He talked about how we as human beings yearn for community because God meant it to be that way. Even God exists in community- The Trinity- notice God says “let us” while creating man. (Genesis 1:26) He also made a wife for Adam because “it is not good for the man to be alone.” (Genesis 2:17-18)

Gen-Z is the loneliest generation yet we are so “connected” with social media. Social media has made us curate our friendships to where we have lost authentic connections in real life. We want friendships that look good or look aesthetic. We don’t actually take the time to truly get to know people and build friendships anymore. Many of us have superficial friendships. More of us feel lonelier than we think and just don’t want to be vulnerable and admit that. I can be around so many people and yet still feel lonely because these base level friendships just don’t do it for me anymore. I want to truly get to know someone and have a true friendship, not just have someone I call a friend when I don’t even know their sister’s name.

There are also other things that go into being a lonely Christian. Pastor Burns said, ” Be prepared for the loneliness you feel when being obedient to God.” Nobody wants to invite you to the gathering because “you’re too lame” to truly have fun. People say things like “I know you don’t do things like this, or how do you even have fun?” It can feel so isolating to be a Christian in today’s society but something that I am learning is that even though I may feel lonely I’m truly never alone. God is with me. Protecting me from fake friendships and bad situations. I know that it is protection and not punishment.

I want to get to the point where God is enough for me. I want to not have to rely on other people for my happiness.

I also believe that God will give you the desires of your heart and I know that God will provide me with true friendship and true community. People I can rely on and trust when I am feeling down. People who want to study the Bible together and help each other grow in Christ. People you can call on when you’re in trouble and just in need of a friend. People who want to live for Christ, not for this world.

Long story short. Many of us feel the same way but feel ashamed to say anything. I think it’s time we start putting ourselves out there and start making true friendships and truly learn and listen to people. I pray that I even make that change in myself because I have fallen guilty to the things I talked about today as well. I pray that we can bring back true community and true friendship.

Thank you for reading.

Kindly,

Kayla