Loneliness (June Hunt Hope for the Heart) Read Online Free

loneliness in your own way instead of seeking God
N EGLECT
    Failure to cultivate your relationship with God and others
    “Come near to God and he will come near to you.” (James 4:8)
WHAT LEADS to Loneliness in Both Men and Women?
    All people feel lonely at times, but the differences between men and women cause us to experience loneliness in different ways and for different reasons. Unmarried individuals and married couples whose relationships are crippled by loneliness are caught in the current cultural whirlwind of changing roles and misplaced expectations.
    Relationship rules have changed. Men and women are floundering with no solid, biblical foundation on which to build a stable, secure relationship. They’re unable to build a bridge to one another that can withstand the pressures of a changing society.
    What worked for our parents and grandparents does not easily work for couples in today’s culture. Many societal supports necessary for forming close family relationships, for building strong emotional bridges, have been discarded. Couples are finding it next to impossible to build something on nothing. Those who try often end up emotionally battered and bruised.
    Having an understanding of the components leading to loneliness within these relationships can be helpful in trying to follow God’s blueprint for building emotional bridges between marriage partners.
    In Genesis we learn that ...
    “The man said, ‘This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called “woman,” for she was taken out of man.’ For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.”
(Genesis 2:23–24)
    When God’s blueprint is not followed ...
A woman typically ... 27
Marries or lives with a boyfriend during her early to mid-twenties and begins feeling lonely in her late twenties
Becomes frustrated and agitated with her mate in her early to mid-thirties and is depressed in her forties
Considers her mate unable or unwilling to give her emotional support
Feels left out of her mate’s life and isolated from him even when in the same room together
Blames her mate for her loneliness
Seeks counseling for depression and/or anxiety
Feels isolated and somewhat estranged from other people, even close friends
Believes her loneliness will end if her mate was out of her life
Fantasizes about her mate dying and/or leaving her
Thinks no one really knows or understands her
Struggles with emotional exhaustion
Seeks to get her emotional relationship needs met through her children or friends
    “The wise woman builds her house, but with her own hands the foolish one tears hers down.” (Proverbs 14:1)
A man typically ... 28
Has less relational skills than his wife or live-in girlfriend
Expresses emotions, empathy, and compassion far less than his female counterpart
Develops few close friendships and feels no real need for them
Competes excessively with other men to easily form close emotional relationships with them
Experiences more isolation but less loneliness than his mate
Has an aversion to displaying emotions because of societal taboos
Lacks deep relationships due to his reluctance to express his feelings
Resists the idea of fellowshipping with other men just for the sake of enjoying one another’s company
Gets together with friends for fun and games, but not for in-depth sharing
Has no male role model to show him how to drop his “macho mask” and get in touch with his feelings
Strives for self-sufficiency and seeks to solve problems on his own without being a burden to others
Prioritizes professional success (from which he derives his identity) over relational success
    “A kind man benefits himself, but a cruel man brings trouble on himself.” (Proverbs 11:17)
Lonely Couples
    Q UESTION: “Why are couples becoming increasingly lonely?”
    A NSWER: Living with someone—married or not—does not insure emotional intimacy or security in the relationship. Many