The Key to True Friendship
Vicki and Lori are the kind of friends you want when you’re eleven and in middle school. Vicki shared her lunch treats with me and Lori and I commiserated over being two of the tallest girls in class. They’re the kind of friends you want forever and I’m blessed to still have them in my life 40 years later.
Over the years, we’ve created beautiful memories and helped each other through some of life’s toughest challenges. Weddings, births, moving to a new state, cancer for Lori, and cancer for my oldest daughter. We’ve supported each other through all of it. The motto of this true friendship is “No matter what, no matter where, no matter when.”
The Bible provides a great example of true friendship in the story of David and Jonathan. When they first meet, they become immediate friends. Their friendship is one of the deepest and closest recorded in the Bible (read more about how they become friends in 1 Samuel chapter 18). Jonathan, the prince of Israel, realizes that David, and not he, will become the next king. This does not weaken Jonathan’s love for David as Jonathan decides that he would much rather lose the throne of Israel than lose his closest friend.
I found four key things to learn from David and Jonathan’s friendship: (1) It is based on their commitment to God, not just each other; (2) they let nothing come between them, not even career or family problems; (3) they drew closer together when their friendship was tested; and (4) they remained friends to the end.
The mark of true friendship is more than just companions enjoying each other’s company. It is about the encouragement and support you offer and the ability to trust each other with deep thoughts and close confidences. We all need friends who will stick close, listen, care and offer help when needed. I think it’s better to have one such friend than to have dozens of superficial acquaintances.
Take a moment today and thank God for the true friends you have in your life. Reach out with a call or text to check in and say hello. Make time to encourage and pray for your friends. Are there friends you’ve lost touch with, but desire to reconnect? Reach out, let them know you care.
If you don’t have a true friend, perhaps the best place to start is to become one – there are people who need your friendship. Strangers today may become friends tomorrow. Ask God for help in finding them, and then take on the challenge of being a true friend. I encourage you to embrace the wise words of Winnie the Pooh who said, “You can’t stay in your corner of the forest waiting for others to come to you. You have to go to them sometimes.”
Proverbs 17:17 | A friend loves at all times.
Wanna pray?
God, thank you for the gift of friendship. The world can feel like such a lonely place sometimes, but you gave us a solution to that loneliness – friendship. I’m thankful for the true friends you have blessed me with. Bless them today in a special way. And help us all to learn how to be true friends in this life – in the good times and bad.