Have you ever felt alone even though you're surrounded by people? Or 'liked' but unloved? 

Many of us have felt like this at some point in our lives, including Doug Bender, I Am Second's chief content writer and author of, I Found Love: True Stories of Discovering Love, Belonging and Friendship. 

When it comes to prayer, many people ask for health, wealth or success. Doug Bender's prayer was a simple one, he wanted a friend.

Growing up, Doug longed for friendship and the search left him with many scars. At the end of the day, he realized the only way to true, lasting love and friendship was through Christ. 

“You are loved—even if you don’t feel it. You are liked—even if you haven’t seen a thumbs-up in weeks,” writes Bender. “A community is here for you, a people ready to say, ‘You are one of us.’ ‘You belong’ is the message of this book. ‘You are loved’ is its anthem. In these pages, you’ll discover broken hearts healed, broken homes rebuilt, and broken lives resurrected.”

He shares his story, along with many other powerful stories of men and women who have broken the barriers of divorce, addiction, racism, abuse, miscarriage, shame and more.

Today on Connections, Doug chats about his book. He also shares his personal journey to find love and fulfillment.