Close Friends
We all need friends. Our friends help us grow in the Lord, as we relate to them and sharpen each other. We learn a lot from other people. However, when we are able to have close friends that is even more true. I wonder how many close friends we actually have? I have heard people say that if we have 5 close friends, we are very fortunate. I believe that is true for most of us. The friendship of David and Saul's son, Jonathan, was one of those types of friendships. (I Samuel 18:1) They were fully committed to each other, and they even made a covenant of friendship between them and their children. We need to have this type of relationship with our close friends.
Loyalty is the quality that is needed for two people to be really close. There must be a commitment, so that both of us can trust each other, and we know that we can count on the other person to act in our best interest. That is how a permanent bond develops. Then, we must continue to do for our friend, as we would do for ourselves. We must love them as we love ourselves. That type of love is genuine and sincere. We truly want to do the best for them, and they want to do the same for us. I pray that we will all be intentional about developing close friendships. Then, at the end of our life on earth, we will find out that we have many more than just a few close friends.
Tomorrow, I intend to read I Samuel 21-23.
Loyalty is the quality that is needed for two people to be really close. There must be a commitment, so that both of us can trust each other, and we know that we can count on the other person to act in our best interest. That is how a permanent bond develops. Then, we must continue to do for our friend, as we would do for ourselves. We must love them as we love ourselves. That type of love is genuine and sincere. We truly want to do the best for them, and they want to do the same for us. I pray that we will all be intentional about developing close friendships. Then, at the end of our life on earth, we will find out that we have many more than just a few close friends.
Tomorrow, I intend to read I Samuel 21-23.