Lonely Man
Rev. Lainie shared an experience in a recent post of a lonely man who randomly asked her for dinner outside a restaurant. Her empathy for this man and insight into the issue of male loneliness is admirable. I believe that she is on to something when she suggested that there may be an opportunity for a missional approach in assisting men who face loneliness. There's no doubt that men have a difficult time with social and emotional loneliness. Men tend to deal with many emotional issues in an unhealthy way -- either by ignoring or avoiding the problem, or acting out in an inappropriate manner. John Mark Ministries shares a story of a pastor who took a wrong turn in his journey of dealing with loneliness. His story is not uncommon. The real problem is not a new one. Men tend not to seek help. Men avoid sharing problems on an emotional level especially with other men. Men usually invest most, if not all of their emotional energy into one significant relationship and if that ...