True Friendship
“A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.” Proverbs 17:17
Insight
One of the greatest lies is believing that some of us were born to be alone. This is not a conversation about being an introvert, an ambivert or an extravert; being alone is detrimental to our health. Friends who can be considered family are some of the greatest gifts we will ever have in this life.
Aside from my wife Denise, I have a few guys who no matter how much time passes before we reunite, we never miss a beat. I go to them with the good, bad and ugly and they still love me. They push me to be better. They are not afraid to challenge me. They are more than willing to encourage me. They always want better for me, and we all need people in our lives who desire that.
There is no greater example of genuine friendship than of Jonathan and David in the Bible. By all logic, this friendship should not have existed. Jonathan was the son of King Saul and King Saul wanted to kill David because he knew that David was next in line for the throne.
If logic were to follow this situation, Jonathan would not want anything to do with David. In fact, it would have been in Jonathan’s best interest to side with his dad and get rid of David. As the son of King Saul, Jonathan would be next in line for the throne, and who would not want that?
Yet, we see that the friendship between David and Jonathan was so intimate that Jonathan went out of his way to protect David at all costs. Jonathan would even warn David if King Saul was planning to attack or harm him. Can you imagine a friendship when a son would protect his friend more than follow his own father?
But that is the power of a relationship that comes from choosing each other. As a child, you do not get to pick your father; but with each relationship we have a choice on how impactful it can be to our lives. Jonathan cared for David so much that the prophet Samuel described it as, “... the soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul” (1 Samuel 18:1). Think about the language used here, how much love and care must have existed between Jonathan and David!
No doubt that a huge component for David’s success was from having a friend who loved him and who was with him through adversity. There is a foreshadowing here of the friendship Jesus desires to have with us. When you become friends with Jesus, you and Him knit souls together. Who Jesus is, what Jesus would say, and what Jesus would do begins to slowly seep into our lives and bring transformation. What a friend we have with Jesus!
Along with our friendship with Jesus, we get to see Jesus in our friendships with each other. Jesus designed us to be in healthy, challenging, encouraging, and fun relationships. If you have such friends, let them know often how grateful you are for them. And if you are still looking for that friend, do not put it off, they are out there!
Reflection
How do you view the friendships in your life? Do you have a friendship that you feel loved and cared in?
Prayer
Father, thank you for allowing us to have such incredible relationships with others. Every human being is imprinted with Your DNA and it is awesome to see You on display in others. Help me to cultivate healthy, challenging, and encouraging relationships. And most importantly, I pray you would be that friend to others. Thank You for being my best friend Jesus, and I ask this in Your name, Amen.
Port City writer Davy Nance wrote today’s devotional.
