In one prison system in the US, 25,000 of the most dangerous inmates endure solitary confinement in small concrete cells. They have virtually no contact with the outside world. An inmate at Oregon State Penitentiary said that the most difficult part about such isolation is “not being able to see somebody face to face . . . to communicate, to touch, to hug, to feel loved, to feel human.” This man’s words seem to scream, “I’m lonely! This is not the way it’s supposed to be.”

The writer of Genesis would have agreed. After God created man, He acknowledged Adam’s loneliness, and said, “It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him.” In essence, God was saying that the man needed another person with whom he could be fully human. Although the immediate setting is companionship, in the larger context God is telling us that being fully human means enjoying relationship with other human beings.

No matter the cause of loneliness—sin, loss, shame, sickness, depression—God says this is “not good.” He created us to be in close relationship with others (Eccl. 4:9-12) and with Him (Rev. 21:3). Reach out and develop those needed friendships—for your sake and theirs.
  — Marvin Williams