No Man is an Island

I wrote this piece for the Thought for the Week in Keighley News a while ago, which unfortunately isn't available online, so here it is in blog form.

“No man is an island”, said John Donne a long time ago, and then the main character played by Hugh Grant in About a Boy more recently. 2020 has definitely shown us just how much we need community and relationships. Some of us have spent weeks without the touch of another human being; mothers have found themselves constantly accompanied but feeling lonelier than ever without support; children have been separated from their friends; and grandparents have sorely missed the noise and mess of their grandchildren.

It’s a scientific fact that loneliness is bad for us – research has found that it increases the risk of premature death by around 30%. We need each other, and as great as Zoom is, it certainly doesn’t live up to a hot cup of tea at someone’s kitchen table or a shoulder to cry on.

Why do we need relationship so much?

The Bible tells us that we were created for relationship. God himself, as Father, Son and Holy Spirit, has always loved and been loved, spoken and heard. Genesis tells us that we are made in His image. We are each precious and we are not meant to be alone. We are designed to be in relationship with God, and with each other. Sadly the mess and madness of this world are often barriers to this. We may not know God and we may disappoint each other. But if the last few months have taught us anything, it’s just how important it is to love and be loved, to speak and to listen.

That shoulder to cry on might have to wait for now as we face more restrictions, but thankfully nothing, not even Coronavirus, can separate us from the love of God. He invites us all to be in his family: Creator and creation, Father and child. As his children we aren’t alone; he gave us each other. And one thing’s for sure: I’m not going to take any of those cups of tea for granted ever again.