For Others

"You need me."

"Ehhh."

"You know you need me."

"I don't know that..."

"I know that you know that you need me."

--The Wedding Planner

Jennifer Lopez may have trying to secure a partnership with her boss, Geri, but these words popped into my head as I was doing Bible study this morning.

Leave it to God to use Jenny from the block to teach a lesson.

I've written about the benefits of isolation, and I truly believe that alone time is beneficial for everyone*.   Frankly, I've become one of those people who just needs a lot of personal space to decompress and analyze.  Favorite, on the other hand, needs to process his thoughts through conversation.

Oddly enough, neither of those eccentricities is wrong, but both require balance.  And one thing (among the multitude of lessons) the Lord is teaching me is we need one another.  Desperately.  In all sorts of circumstances.  For all sorts of reasons.  Check it out:  Philippians 2:3-4 and 1 Corinthians 12:21

Those two scriptures are just the tip of the ice burg.  John Donne was onto something when he penned the words, "No man is an island." (OF COURSE I was going to quote John Donne like any good English nerd.  You're welcome.)

We are required to pray for one another (James 5:16).  I've needed those prayers this week--often to keep from over analyzing (which is my real spiritual gift). 

But prayer isn't the only reason we need one another.  I think there is comfort in knowing we can really trust someone to be there when it counts.  We find relief in our ability to text the craziest message on the face of the planet and know the response will be something along the lines of "Gotcha."

And then sometimes we just need to know we aren't doing "it" alone.  Whatever that may be.

Basically, I think God entrusted us with one another because we need a reminder that it's not all about us at the same time we are fulfilled because we feel needed.



*  (Sometimes I'm not really a great steward of my alone time, but this post has really made me think about the free time I will have this summer.)