Friends

Friendships are hard. They’re messy. Someone always ends up getting hurt, or upset. When we were kids, somehow something would happen to make us take our bat and ball and go home. But we were all created for authentic relationships. The kind of friendships that aren’t just acquaintances, but deep meaningful ones. All of us will someday get “the call.” You know the one you never ever want to get... and we will need close friends who care about us and will support and pray for us as we walk through those times. And we will all have times that are an absolute blast, and we will want to share those times with people we love. The Bible says in Romans 12 “Love from the center of who you are; don't fake it. Run for dear life from evil; hold on for dear life to good. Be good friends who love deeply; practice playing second fiddle. Don't burn out; keep yourselves fueled and aflame. Be alert servants of the Master, cheerfully expectant. Don't quit in hard times; pray all the harder. Help needy Christians; be inventive in hospitality. Bless your enemies; no cursing under your breath. Laugh with your happy friends when they're happy; share tears when they're down. Get along with each other; don't be stuck-up. Make friends with nobodies; don't be the great somebody. Don't hit back; discover beauty in everyone. If you've got it in you, get along with everybody. Don't insist on getting even; that's not for you to do. "I'll do the judging," says God. "I'll take care of it."Our Scriptures tell us that if you see your enemy hungry, go buy that person lunch, or if he's thirsty, get him a drink. Your generosity will surprise him with goodness. Don't let evil get the best of you; get the best of evil by doing good."

Wow, that is packed with practical insight for our daily relationships. It’s so easy to put ourselves in the very center of our worlds, and lose sight of everyone else around us. We forget about others, and wonder why no one cares about us. I heard a quote one time that said, “you need to become the kind of friend you wish to have.” All of us want to share life deeply with a group of close friends who really love the real us, but doing the work to become that friend to someone else is hard and really pretty scary. I think that’s why we have so many shallow friendships... because people aren’t willing to put in the hard work and become vulnerable. It’s not easy to be that kind of friend. It takes a lot of guts, but it’s more than worth it. I want to encourage you today to reflect on your character and the type of person you are. Then begin the journey to become that type of friend who you long for.

Monday, January 29, 2007