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Good morning. I was once asked to visit an elderly woman at Homerton Hospital because she was close to death and she hadn’t had any visitors.  I sat and read to her and it was clear from her expression that the human contact meant a great deal - because whatever our lifestyle we need each other, and most of the time it costs nothing.

Loneliness is a common human experience.  All of us, whether single or with a partner, whether for a short or long period of time, have experienced loneliness.  Whatever ones background, life experiences or lifestyle the truth is, we struggle without others.  Even the psalmist says to God in Psalm 25: ‘Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and afflicted.’

Loneliness is a recognised problem among the elderly – but within the last decade, a study by The Mental Health Foundation found loneliness to be greater among younger people aged 18-34, than the elderly over 55’s – and one in four men who call The Samaritans’ helpline mentions loneliness or isolation.

It needn’t be grand gestures, a smile or a brief exchange of words to the person you see on the bus on the way to work, can make all the difference to someone’s life, in the same way that it does to us when we receive the same from others.

Another quote - this time from psalm 147 – says: ‘God helps the broken hearted and binds up their wounds.’

So today we recognise that regardless of our lifestyles, we all feel lonely from time to time. We remember all those who are alone, or who feel burdened with loneliness and we ask for your comfort. And in your love, let them know that they are not forgotten.  Amen.