AWE AND WONDER
Why Gathering together is important
“Fellowship”
Acts 2:42 &46
Fellowship, gathering together, community, whatever you want to call it is not only a good thing, it is a divine thing. God has so created us, that we need fellowship and community with others.
Genesis 2:18, “then the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone, I will make a helper suitable for him.”
God saw that we needed people, specifically here He is creating the first relationship, husband and wife, Adam and Eve. However, it gives a look inside the way He made us, needing possibly evening longing for others.
Fellowship = Friendly relationship, companionship, or community.
Community = a social group of any size whose members reside in a specific locality, share government, and often have a common cultural and historical heritage. Group who lead a common life.
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine says that one-third of adults aged 45 and older feel lonely, and nearly one-fourth of adults aged 65 and older are considered to be socially isolated.
The Campaign to end loneliness shares some statistics on loneliness.
Health risks
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Loneliness is likely to increase your risk of death by 26% (Holt-Lunstad, 2015)
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Loneliness, living alone and poor social connections are as bad for your health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day. (Holt-Lunstad, 2010)
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Loneliness is worse for you than obesity. (Holt-Lunstad, 2010)
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Loneliness and social isolation are associated with an increased risk of developing coronary heart disease and stroke [1]
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Loneliness increases the risk of high blood pressure [2]
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Loneliness with severe depression is associated with early mortality [3] and loneliness is a risk factor for depression in later life [4]
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Loneliness and social isolation put individuals at greater risk of cognitive decline and dementia [5]
Loneliness and older people
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The number of over-50s experiencing loneliness is set to reach two million by 2025/6. This compares to around 1.4 million in 2016/7 – a 49% increase in 10 years [6]
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Half a million older people go at least five or six days a week without seeing or speaking to anyone at all [7]
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Well over half (59%) of those aged 85 and over and 38% of those aged 75 to 84 live alone [8]
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Two fifths all older people (about 3.9 million) say the television is their main company [9]
Loneliness and people of all ages
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In total , 45% of adults feel occasionally, sometimes or often lonely in England. This equates to twenty five million people.
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In 2016 to 2017, there were 5% of adults (aged 16 years and over) in England reporting feeling lonely “often/always” – that’s 1 in 20 adults. Furthermore, 16% of adults reported feeling lonely sometimes and 24% occasionally. [10]
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Research commissioned by Eden Project initiative The Big Lunch found that disconnected communities could be costing the UK economy £32 billion every year. [11]
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Characteristics of people who are more likely to experience loneliness include: those who are widowed, those with poorer health and those with long-term illness or disability. 43.45% of the group reporting bad or very bad health are often/always lonely. [4]
Gender and Loneliness
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According to the ONS, women reported feeling lonely more frequently than men. They were significantly more likely than men to report feeling lonely “often/always”, “some of the time” and “occasionally” and were much less likely than men to say they “never” felt lonely [12]
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While higher percentages of older women report loneliness compared to men, a greater number of older men (50+) report moderate to high levels of social isolation [13]
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14% of older men experienced moderate to high social isolation compared to 11% of women [8]
Loneliness and families
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A survey by Action for Children found that 43% of 17 – 25 year olds who used their service had experienced problems with loneliness, and that of this same group less than half said they felt loved. [14]
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Action for Children have also reported 24% of parents surveyed said they were always or often lonely.
Loneliness and disabled people
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Research by Sense has shown that up to 50% of disabled people will be lonely on any given day. [15]
THE BENEFITS FROM HEALTHLINE ON FRIENDSHIP AND FELLOWSHIP.
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Less loneliness and social isolation. The mental side.
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Reduced stress. Which translates into better health. Reduced feelings of anxiety, depression and irritability.
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Emotional support. – listening, validating feelings, helping distract from feeling sad or upset.
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Helps in personal development. Accountability.
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A sense of belonging. A feeling that you matter and have purpose. In the Maslow’s hierarchy of needs Belonging is third, just behind Basic needs like food and shelter and safety.
NOW WE CAN ALL SEE THAT GOD CREATED RELATIONSHIPS AND THAT BIOLOGICALLY IT IS GOOD TO HAVE RELATIONSHIPS.
BUT WHY IS BIBLICAL FELLOWSHIP SO IMPORTANT?
Acts 2:42, “They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”
Vs. 46, “Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart.”
Gladness = Feeling of joy or pleasure, delighted, pleased.
Sincerity = Freedom from deceit, hypocrisy, or duplicity, honesty in intention or in communicating.
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God has ordained it.
Hebrews 10:19-25, “Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful, and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the day drawing near.”
2. It provides great comfort and accountability.
James 5:16, “Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.”
Galatians 6:2, “Bear one another’s burdens,”
3. It helps us Grow up and mature in faith and life.
Proverbs 27:17, “As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.”
Ephesians 4:14-15, “As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by the craftiness in deceitful scheming, but speaking truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ.”
4. It helps the Church grow and become a beacon of Love.
Ephesians 4:16, “from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in Love.”
5. It fights off the strategy of Satan for isolation and discouragement.
1 Peter 5:8, “Be sober-minded, be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”
Ecclesiastes 4:9-12, “Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed. If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But someone who falls alone is in real trouble. Likewise, two people lying close together can keep each other warm. But how can one be warm alone? A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back to back to conquer. Three are even better, for a triple braided cord is not easily broken.”
Look at this – Fellowship
Helps you reach your goals.
Can help you when you struggle and fall down. We all will.
Can help not only with warm, but emotional support.
Can help you stay in the fight and not be defeated by the tactics of the devil.
Proverbs 18:1, “He who separates himself seeks his own desire, He quarrels against all sound wisdom.”
