“Though one may be overpowered by another, two can withstand him. And a threefold cord is not quickly broken.” Ecclesiastes 4:12

Social Resilience

I read an article in the newspaper this week that outlined some research done on the topic of “social resilience”—in other words, a feeling of being prepared for a crisis because of having people around you to help each other through it. Communities with social resilience actively seek to fix problems and feel prepared and thus less afraid to meet disaster.

Today, we have a fancy name for what God simply called friendship. He taught us the value of it beginning with Adam, when God declared it was not good for man to be alone. He spoke to Moses face to face as people speak to each other in friendship. He declared Abraham His friend when Abraham believed God’s word to him. Jesus had many friends, and He calls us His friends (John 15:13-15).

In Ecclesiastes, we are taught that two people can get more work done than one and thus they earn more money together than one could earn alone; we are also taught here that with someone else nearby, you will have someone to help you up when you fall; two generate more warmth than one alone; and two can more easily withstand being overpowered by someone or something (social resilience). Lastly in this passage, we are told three together is even stronger than just two.

In these Walk His Way devotionals, and in comments left by readers, we have read of life-changing situations, extreme difficulties, illnesses, and disasters that were made bearable by friendships with other women. God has told us to love one another, to bear one another’s burdens, to pray for each other, to pick each other up, to comfort one another, to be in unity of mind, heart, purpose, body, Spirit, hope, and faith.

And we see many other things in the lives of the people that inhabit the pages of our Bibles that show friendships and devotion toward one another. We see hospitality in abundance. Caring for strangers. Loaning possessions. Comforting the grieving. Giving of our abundance and our lack. Celebrating feasts days, weddings, victories. You could no doubt add dozens of examples of friendship being shown.

I always smile when the newspaper reports something as “new” that God said long ago. If it is important to people today, it was important to people in Bible days, and God has already addressed it. “That which has been is what will be, that which is done is what will be done, and there is nothing new under the sun. Is there anything of which it may be said, ‘See, this is new’? It has already been in ancient times before us” (Ecclesiastes 1:9-10).

Lord, grant us friends to help in time of need, to celebrate with, and to pray for us. And grant that we would not live merely for ourselves, but be a friend to others. Amen.