Teen: You Are Meant For Relationships

From the beginning, God knew man should not be alone. After breathing life into Adam, God put him to sleep and took out one of his ribs. (Maybe this qualifies as the first surgery ever done.) From this rib, God created a special companion for the man and called her woman. Formed from his side, she would be his equal, to be beside him throughout life. Even though Adam was very close to God, and their communion was unhindered by sin, God still saw that the man needed human companionship.

Our need for relationships has not changed. Humans were created to have valuable relationships with one another. As creations we take after our Creator, who Himself, exists as a triune being: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. They are each distinct in their role, but they are One, having the same nature, same mind, same will, and the same attributes. Of God and Jesus, the Bible states that, “He [Jesus] is the radiance of His [God’s] glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power” (Hebrews 1:3). Of the Holy Spirit, the Bible states, “He [God] who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God” (Romans 8:28).

This unique truth of sameness and difference becomes a reality for humans, too, when we believe in Jesus Christ as our savior. The Bibles states, “The one who joins himself to the Lord is one spirit with Him” (1 Corinthians 6: 17). Amazing. Coming to Christ is an act of our will to nail our sinful flesh to the cross with Christ, who suffered our curse of death. God then begins to transform us.

When a man and woman marry, they become one flesh. The Bible states, “For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and shall be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh” (Ephesians 5: 31-32).

Our union with God through repentance, and acceptance of Christ’s sacrifice on our behalf, enables us to be in healthy and valuable relationships with each other. God wants this for us. And sometimes, a true friend may not be the coolest, prettiest, or smartest girl or boy in your class.

You might balk at needing relationships. Life is hard and our human response to hardship is to become harder than the hardship. When we rely on ourselves to make it through life, we tend to believe lies that function to protect us. If I felt unloved as a child, I might grow up believing that I don’t need or want love. This mentality will protect me from experiencing rejection, but it will also block me from experiencing God’s love and authentic relationships, perpetuating a negative cycle.

Jesus breaks these negative cycles and restores our oneness with God and our relationship with ourselves and with each other. Through this, He restores our sense of belonging and significance.

How has Jesus helped you experience better relationships?