In January of my sophomore year of college, I laced up my hiking boots and packed a backpack (and two huge suitcases) and set off for a semester abroad in Santiago, Chile. My then-boyfriend, whom I had begun dating just a mere three months prior to leaving, wrote me a letter to read while I was gone. There is one passage from the letter that I still think of occasionally. In it was Ecclesiastes 4:12: “A cord of three strands is not easily broken,” and below it, the words “and what a strong cord we will have: you, me, and the Lord of all creation.” And although that relationship didn’t survive the strain of a semester away from each other (long distance is hard when you’re nineteen!), I’ve applied that sentiment to many of my relationships over the years: friendships, romantic relationships, and familial relationships alike.
When I was young, I didn’t know how to braid my hair. I would end up just separating my hair into two sections and twisting them around each other, until one year at church camp when a friend taught me how to correctly braid my hair. The secret? Separating it into three sections, like the author of Ecclesiastes says in chapter 4, the cord of three strands is not easily broken. I’ve found this to be true over and over again throughout my life. My relationships with other people are so much stronger when the relationship is built on a mutual desire to serve and love God first, then each other.
Surrounding yourself with people who love the Lord is so important, especially during formational seasons of life. Lack of community makes it increasingly hard to find purpose. I have found that a life in pursuit of God is so much more meaningful when it is done in community. When surrounded by other believers, seasons of fruitfulness become even more sweet, and seasons of doubt are met with comfort and understanding. The cord of three strands provides a safe place to learn, to question, and to grow. It is important that we not only seek out this kind of community for ourselves, but commit to being this kind of community for those around us. The kingdom of God is a place where all who believe are welcome. May we seek to live this out in our own lives each and every day.
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47 thoughts on "The Loneliness of Wealth"
Solomon is considered to be one of the wealthiest men to date. The passage talks about how he was lonely because mere possessions were not enough to fulfill and because his wealth was not enough to end corruption. Trying to solve his issues with money was futile.
The hope is that when we include God into the equation, then it becomes transformative. God brings the restoration.
so so good
I’m sorry, but what does the title of this devotional and the amazing verses you list at the beginning have to do with the actual devotional? I might be missing something. Please let me know!
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Amen! God never intended for us to be alone. He wants us to be a part of a body, the body, of Christ. He wants us to do our part, whatever it might be — and not to look down on those who don’t do what we do, or who are led differently (for they might be an ear and you may be a hand) and yet, to serve in love however God has called us, to encourage and spur one another on to love and good deeds. ♥️ In this way the world will see us and know we are His disciples when we love and care for one another, when we have hope, and firm confidence in Christ. Who will take care of us, when we fear God we need fear nothing else!
Diana, know that I and all our SRT sisters pray for you in your environmental sensitivities. Your isolation must be so hard to endure. I pray the Lord will bring you satisfying online, voice, and Zoom relationships. And bring you peace. Last fall, I discovered I have an allergy to a certain component of some fragrances. I have had to eliminate personal and home care items containing this chemical (also a naturally occurring substance) never listed on labels in the USA. But it is not so drastic and confining as your affliction. I pray the Lord gives you patience and endurance. I also treasure now more than ever the fact that I am not sensitive to others that use fragrances, to the extent you are, that I must completely avoid people. I praise Him that you and I are both wonderfully and fearfully made. I continue to pray for your strength.
Oh how I’m longing for deep friendships that are a 3-strand cord, and to reconnect with my church family and have corporate worship again! But God has been using this time of isolation to show me areas in my life that need to be sorted out in order for those relationships to be rich and fruitful…my longing is for them, but my tendency is to hold parts of myself back out of fear. God is working, and I’m thankful for today’s reading reminding me of this!
I miss fellowship so much! It’s sad not knowing when we will be able to meet as a church again but I’m trying to use this time to develop my personal relationship with Him. Hoping things go back to normal soon!
God never expected us to live life alone. It’s important that we build a community of people who will help push us when life gets tough.
I remember when I was younger I longed for a friend that would help me a long this path. It wasnt until I started seeking God exclusively that he brought the right women around me that I call sisters. Now my prayer is that I continue to be a friend they need in whatever season they are facing. ♡
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Wow, this was very convicting! I’ve been self-isolating due to pain and fear even pre-Covid-19, and I am becoming increasingly aware of how damaging it is. I always thought my relationship to God was my own. But I know better- Christian fellowship is so important. And our relationship with God can’t really be brought to fruition without it.
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Praying for you, Makenzie!
Just learned of this app , excited to have a way to keep on track with my intentions for study!
A verse that stuck out to me was “and I saw that all toil and achievement spring from one person’s envy of another” Ecclesiastes 4:4…. I think I’m guilty of this to an extent every day. I struggle with comparison to others and I shouldn’t make other’s success a motivation for mine. True community and fellowship among believers is celebrating each other’s successes with a sincere heart and encouraging one another. It’s hard to find community at this time! God has placed it on my heart to find a small group that I can be a part of and it’s just very hard with my night shift schedule and now this pandemic to do that. I’m hoping once this finally settles down I can be obedient to the Lord’s calling to surround myself with godly women.
What a timely reading and devotion. I am by nature a “people“ person. I love people! But… I also cherish and enjoy my “alone“ time. Especially my “quiet“ time.
During this time of social distancing I have been able to “make“ time to text, call, and sometimes walk with a friend. Contact those I have not had time to because of work. We need community. And even though I am not much of a techie person, I am thankful for Zoom and the Internet enabling me to stay connected with my sisters in Christ!  and at my age, LOL, I really am enjoying ZOOM. It’s the nearest thing! And my mom even older, enjoyed it when we had a family Zoom celebration of my brother and his wife’s 25th wedding anniversary. Needless to say I am thankful for today’s technology so that we can all stay connected to the Church!
Angie, what a beautiful idea to remember those who have modeled eternal freedom for us! Thank you for a way to make Memorial Day even more meaningful!
So thankful for you all here and for your prayers. Praying that my sister and her husband would find Jesus in all of this, and realize that with him, every other issue in the world will fall into place. Prayers appreciated for my family, for unity and peace. It can be overwhelming when my sister and brother in law seem to constantly be sending me news articles about current issues of churches that don’t obey the social distancing rules. But of course you only hear of the people who are not obeying in the news, instead of the many churches who are taking precautions, and who also have been serving their communities during this time. Praying that the devil would lose his power over them. I even brought up pornography (which is a part of my story, though I didn’t tell her that) when I talked to my sister last week, and she didnt see how horrible it can be and said that it can be “art”. If that’s not the devil then I don’t know what is. Prayers appreciated SRT family!
Praying for your family Sarah! During all of this I have been praying for the salvation of my ex bf. I know that God is doing something big in all of this. It’s crazy to think that for the first time ever we are all forced to be away from the distractions of our daily lives. I pray that God speaks to your sister and your brother in-law. May Satan be far from them!
Today’s SRT passages are so very personal and they incite both pain and hope. I have read these and many like passages which point us to God’s intentional design of the church, the body of believers over the years in an isolating chronic illness. I have spent many hours with tearful pleas to the one who is able to bring this beautiful design more tangibly in my life (and the lives of others who are in like circumstances). My church experience has been one in which the common saying, “out of sight, out of mind” rang true as my health condition worsened and I could no longer function well enough to go to the church gathering.
As the isolation grew, I sought help through the word and found myself saturated by the promise of fellowship. So I hoped and attempted to invite people to my home asking them to not wear fragrances, but my body had become so reactive to even the slightest scent, I could not even tolerate this. Now years later my main access to other humans, outside of my husband, is the phone and computer and even with those limits must be set or else the flares get out of control. I was told by some that my prison of sickness is due to lack of faith and others admitted they were afraid of my illness so stayed away. And some suggested that I was idolizing the community. It’s been a confusing path of pain.
Yet, it’s been a journey of learning to hold onto hope and keep believing this promise of fellowship is true for me. I aim to wait and trust and listen to the Lord as I pray for healing of my overactive body and endurance to keep the faith as I wait for his deliverance. I confess that my hope has failed in the past and even today it’s a battle of the mind to keep my eyes on my Deliverer, believing he is the God who raises the dead and sets his people free from prisons. I continue to pray for many with ME/CFS or other conditions which keep them homebound because of bodies which do not tolerate even the presence of people because of sensory and environmental sensitivities. These are people who have been “social distancing” for much longer than our common COVID-19 experience. I pray that we will not strive for health outside of God’s ways, nor worry about it, but to seek God’s kingdom first while knowing he cares for us in our pain. Please pray with me.
Diana,
Your post was heart wrenching. I’m so sorry for all the difficulties you are dealing with. I will pray with you and for you. Thank you for sharing your story. It’s definitely made me more mindful of the many struggles people are going through that we don’t see. I read a post on Instagram today from Jo Saxton. I don’t know if you are familiar with her. She’s an evangelist among other things. Anyway it really touched me and I hope it’s an encouragement to you.
“ Hope still wins but it often has a tear stained face.
It has a vulnerable heart.
It has bloodied fists, because it keeps on fighting.
It has scraped knees, because it keeps on crawling forward.
It’s sweaty; Hope is not necessarily pretty.
But you always want Hope on your side,
because Hope will fight for you.
Hope will fight for the hardest parts of your life.”
God bless!
Praying with you, Diana. And may I remind you that your sickness is not for lack of faith but so that the glory of God might be displayed through your particular story (see John 9:3). Don’t let anyone heap that shame on you that God does not intend you to carry! Praying he would bring selfless, sincere, encouraging, unconditional community alongside you!
I feel I am part of several Christian communities. The first is here with you, my sisters in Christ, I am able to seek help and provide help with you my SRT sisters. I so enjoy coming everyday to not only read the scripture and devotion but also the many wise and helpful comments here. I am able seek prayer and pray for others. Another of my Christian communities is my church, even through social distancing they are still reaching out and keeping in touch and remaing a community. God bless you all and happy Monday.
Wow this devotion hit the nail on the head for me today! First, Ellen I studied abroad in Valparaiso, Chile and it was one of the best 5 months of my life! I hope you made it to Patagonia while you were there :) God blew my socks off with the beauty of His Creation!
Second, I was so thankful to spend 4 years at a Christian university that placed such a HUGE emphasis on community. From your very first night on campus, you were placed in small groups to do fun activities. Your freshman year floor was designed to create a space for community to develop. I had the opportunity to play on the field hockey team so now I have a group of life-long sisters in Christ. How I cherish those 4 years of rich Christ-centered community so much. In the last 2 years since graduating college I have found it much more challenging to find community. I am so thankful my home church where my parents live started weekly Zoom Bible studies. That, in addition to the SRT community, has been such sweet sense of virtual community. I thank God for my 2 best friends from undergrad who I can call any time and where our friendship is a cord of 3 strands. I am so thankful I can share my heart with them and know they will give me Godly advice and lift me up in prayer.
Third, in church yesterday one of our pastors preached about the necessity of diversity in the body of Christ. Today’s passage from 1 Corinthians truly highlighted this message. We all have been created with unique gifts to use for His glory. The fruit of the Spirit we bear is not for ourselves, but for those inside and outside of the body of Christ who need it. We are not here to exercise our own will, but to allow God to manifest His will through us. The fruit that God has uniquely equipped each of us to bear will draw people to us who desperately need that fruit. There’s a chapter in the book I just finished called “The Rest of the Gospel” that also addresses this idea.
Lastly! (Sorry for the long post) As a single woman, God is really teaching me that I need to find a husband who loves the Lord. Someone who can join me in Matthew 6:33 “seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness.” For any of my single friends out there I would recommend the book “The Sacred Search.” A friend recommended it to me and it helped me tremendously.
Life is so much sweeter in community, and I am so blessed by this SRT community! Happy Monday sisters <3
Today’s thoughts of being in community are something I so long for right now. With the COVID restrictions, no church, friends who have family sick or dying from COVID-19, I have had little community in my life. I have a zoom knit night once/week. I watch church but I’m used to being there & helping with the kids. Wealth might be meaningless but friendship and relationships are meaningFUL.
Emma, I’ve been in seasons like you are now, hungry for meaningful friendships. I’m praying with you that God will provide you with friends to do life with and help continue point you to Christ.
Angie, I, too, remember often the handful of people God placed in my life through the years and like you, remember them with a thankful heart. You will be remembered as one who shared freely her love for her Savior and had a heart for serving others. Your comments are always full of wisdom and bless my heart! Thank you for sharing so freely here at SRT!
Distancing has shown me how self-sufficient we are. How little we rely on our community, if at all. Was it not the intention of these passages to show us how important it is for us all to come together to create a whole? That without each other, we are incomplete? It occurs to me that I have been storing up my earthly treasures without realizing it.
Yes! Love this!
Amen…powerful
Angie, this is so beautiful. I have never thought to think of those who have showed us a life of eternal freedom. Thank you for sharing!
I can’t do a direct reply because the app closes when I try, so Angie I hope you see this. Thank you for sharing the story about Arthur Moore. What an incredible testimony of a life well-lived. Reminds of my dad who I lost many years ago now. He was similar–a farmer and a man who simply walked with Christ–no flare, no showing off to the world, just walked day in and out in recognition of the Creator and the Saviour. Blessings to you and your family.
I love this reminder of the importance of community in the body of Christ. We aren’t meant to walk in our own strength. I am weak but His grace is sufficient and His power is made perfect in weakness. I need not fear John 14:27. He is using trials to refine me. To draw me close to Him. I must trust Him and thank Him, knowing that I cannot even imagine what He’s prepared for me. Ephesians 2:8,9,10. God’s got our backs. As His children we are dearly loved by one so faithful. He gives us Christian brothers and sisters to worship Him together, sharpen and build each other up, and bring glory to Him as we draw near to Him, and He draws near to us. Romans 8:28. James 4. I love the song “refiner” wonderful reminder of how God is so good, and we can trust and surrender to Him! Thank you Lord for trials, for drawing me close to you, I love you Lord, thank you for loving me and my Cheisyian family so deeply and incomprehensibly. You are love, you are more than enough!
I agree with Lesley! The podcast is great! My husband and I even streamed Parish Presbyterian on Sunday so I could continue hearing Dr. Grant teach on Ecclesiastes!
Grateful for the reminder of God as our third strand.
We had a friend, years ago…Arthur Moore. He owned the farm we lived on. He was a multimillionaire – but you wouldn’t know it. He dressed in very old clothes and drove a beater-type truck (ran well/looked bad). Our boys were little, I was a young mom at home, and he was like a grandfather to us. He was probably in his late 70’s when we moved onto the farm. He taught me to garden. Together we would put out an acre. What I didn’t have in brute strength, he did. What he didn’t have in endurance, I did. And what neither of us had in bending ability for the harvest, our boys did. He taught us well. I didn’t fully realize his blessing at the time. We loved him. He didn’t just teach me about gardening. Once a summer, he would take us blueberry picking. We would drive forever…clear up to a place he liked in Michigan. Then on the way home he would take us to McDonalds – his treat. Our little family didn’t eat out much. And the one time I had saved for Happy Meals because of the toys inside, my boys cried and begged me to make them, “real food,” because they didn’t like the fast food. However, when we went with Art, it felt like a party. Art was a strong man, who loved God first and foremost. He also loved and cared for his wife, Hilda, who was pretty much blind. He was a servant in God’s kingdom, and he was so wise.
Philippians 4-11-13 and 1 Timothy 6:6-12 talk about contentment. Proverbs 19:23 says, “The fear of the Lord leads to life; then one rests content, untouched by trouble.”
Churchmouse, your question…where in lies your wealth?, is such a wise question.
I am so thankful to God for the people and experiences he has allowed in my life that draw me closer to Him and teach me of His wisdom and love. Art lived out Jesus so naturally…and the world was blessed. I pray that someday when I too am Home with Jesus, that those who knew me will look back on my life and remember not me, not my accomplishments, or what I had or didn’t have, but that their thoughts will be, “she lived out Jesus so naturally…and the world was blessed.”
Yes, this Memorial Day we remember those who have given their lives for our freedom and we honor them.
How about also remembering those who lives exemplified eternal freedom. Those put in our lives by our loving Father to draw us closer to Him. The Art Moore’s of our lives. Thanking God for them.
Thanking God for Jesus, from whom that eternal freedom is made possible.
And praying, that I will some day be remembered as one of His.
Only if we could remember like the days of the Apostles in Luke, to share and fellowship and not to be selfish but generous people of God. We are not here for ourselves, but for the purposes of our Lord Jesus Christ.
As my husband & I have grown stronger in faith through our 40 years of marriage, so has our marriage grown stronger. Thank you Lord, for being our third strand!
An additional thought:
Above all else, may we be wealthy in the fruit of the Spirit. What a legacy and testimony that would be.
Wherein lies your wealth? Is your bank account secure? Are your friends many? Is your health satisfactory? Are you and your family close? Is your career satisfying? Is your relationship with God your highest priority? Yes, there can be loneliness in wealth but one must first determine the source of one’s wealth and the cost one is willing to pay to maintain it. Each area: money, friends, health, family, career, and God require the investment of time. Where are you putting your energy and what is the return on your investment? What is the legacy you will leave? Solomon acknowledges the brevity of life and the importance of investing well. Perhaps today would be a good day for all of us to ponder our priorities.
Today is Memorial Day in the USA. We pause today to remember those whose investment in the freedom of our country cost them their very lives. We think of those who served then and those who serve now. We bow our heads in respectful remembrance and appreciation. We pray for their families who sacrifice as well. God bless every one.
I’ve been thinking about ‘A cord of three…’ and ‘iron sharpens iron…’ a lot these past weeks. Having a relationship like this is amazing and can take by surprise. I had the strongest friendship I’ve ever had form over the past four months and was taken aback by the deep emotions I had when she was called to missions elsewhere. For years as I craved it, people told me a friendship or community like that is unnatural and uncommon -and they were right though they meant to discourage me. It can only be formed when allowing the Third Strand to be involved and so often we sadly forget that. While she and I will continue sharpening one another in years to come, it is with increased vigor that I pursue a community full of people sharpening one another. If a cord of three is not easily broken, how much more so a cord of five or ten or a hundred?
What joy it gives me when I think of all the different people and their different gifts it takes to do His work. We have a common goal, which is so much easier to accomplish when shared with His love and strength.
Amen! Blessed Beth. That’s the key right there! We all have different gifts to serve his purpose.
Just wanted to say thank you for the SRT podcast. I’ve used the reading plans for over 4 years but never tried the podcast until now. I’m not really into podcasts in general as I prefer listening to music but I put this week’s one on while doing cleaning on Saturday and it was a great way to recap the week’s readings and go deeper. This might become part of my Saturday routine!
I’ll have to listen to them when I get my hearing aid back. It streams into my head! Sounds like the podcast would be good for me too.
“A cord of three strands is not easily broken” – this was the text preached in during our wedding service in August 1994 <3