Welcome to 10-minute Bible Talks, where we connect the Bible to your life.

In the time it takes to get to work. I'm Patrick Miller. We've lost the meaning of friendship.

I don't mean that we don't know how to have friends, although honestly, that's a challenge for some

people, because just two

years ago, the U.S. Surgeon General declared that we're going through a loneliness epidemic.

He said, quote, we know that loneliness is a common feeling that many people experience.

It's like hunger or thirst. It's a feeling the body sends us when something we need for survival is missing.

Millions of people in America are struggling in the shadows, and that's not right. That's why I

issued this advisory to pull back the curtain on a struggle that too many people are experiencing.

Now, if the U.S. Surgeon General is saying that, I know that there are people who are listening

to this podcast who feel that same loneliness. The average American report is spending about

20 minutes a day with friends, which is down from 60 minutes a day, just two decades ago.

Men in particular are reporting fewer closer relationships. In 1990, 55% of men said they had at least six good friends.

Today, that's only 27% of men. In fact, 12% of Americans say they have no close friends at all.

So line 10 people up and realize that one of them has no good friends. The majority has very few

and not as many as they'd like.

And this has nothing about our definition of close friendship. I mean, remember, I didn't simply

say that we have loneliness. I said that we've lost the meaning of friendship, which is part

of why we have so much loneliness, which is part of why we have so few close friends. I mean,

how would you define a close friendship? Is that someone

that you spend regular time with? Someone that you talk about sports with on every Sunday? I mean,

is that a good friend? Or do we mean close friends who know us deeply and whom we know deeply?

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