KODOKUSHI

In this psalm, David hides from his pursuers in a cave. Twice in Scripture we find David seeking refuge from King Saul in a cave – at Adullam2 and En Gedi.3 On neither occasion was he without companions, for some of his men were present, but his sense of isolation imprisons him in a dungeon of loneliness and despair. Whether or not he is truly on his own, David feels so alone that he plunges into deep depression.

To David, it seems that nobody cares about him (v 4), yet he remembers that God has not abandoned him and will answer his cry for deliverance (vs 5–7). A glimmer of hope penetrates his despondent heart like a glimmer of light shining in through the entrance to his dark cave. He knows he will be free at last and able to share his experience of God’s goodness with his fellow believers (v 7).

Unlike many parts of the developing world, where family and community ties often remain very strong, the Western world has become fractured and fragmented. Loneliness caused by the absence of social contact has serious emotional consequences for its victims, particularly the elderly. In Japan, so many old people die alone and remain undiscovered for a long time that a special term has been used there since the 1980s – kodokushi. Like David, Christians know they are never alone in this world, even though at times our perception can be somewhat different. Some of our struggles, like Abraham’s with regard to the sacrifice of Isaac,4 we must face with only God’s help, but God forbid that anything like kodokushi should ever be found in the churches, communities, and neighborhoods we belong to as believers!

Recent studies show that loneliness is a major health threat. Can you think of ways to cultivate relationships that could help alleviate your own or someone else’s sense of isolation?