What A Friend

What a Friend

When my spirit is heavy, I put on my garment of praise and thank the Lord for His friendship with me. I thank Him for His grace that allowed me to grieve the way I needed to grieve, I thank Him for His protection and mercy over my life throughout all my mistakes, I thank Him for His forgiveness that never ceases to amaze me, and I think Him for His promise that I will see my family again in Heaven. I marvel at the realization that the Creator of the universe desires a friendship with me.

My dad asked us kids once why we thought God created us, my response was I thought it was to worship Him, but my dad had a different revelation. He responded gently, "He created us for communion with Him, to have a relationship with Him." We can see this modeled throughout the Old Testament through various stories leading up to the birth, life, and death of Jesus, where the ultimate friendship was solidified throught the Cross.

To say someone is a good or bad friend is impossible. All of us are human, we all cause pain. You can be a good person and still be the villain in someones story, we never know the perspective that others truly have for us, even the ones that we let into our inner most circle. This certainly doesn't mean that everyone should have access to you all the time but it also eliminates pride from the equation. When faced with a friend breakup, it's easy to point fingers and wallow in the sadness of it all. Friend breakups are hard and sometimes harder than actual romantic relationships. It causes more heartache than some of us would like to admit, so when you do find a friend that re-energizes you, they are a friend to hold onto.

A true example of this is our relationship with Jesus because he revitalizes us when we spend time in his presence but God just loves to give us an overflow majority of the time so he blesses with earthly friends who do the same. Last weekend, I had the opportunity to visit my friend, Theresa, in Northern California. I was especially excited for this short trip to visit her because I always leave her presence feeling inspired and strengthened. Not just because we have a good time together or because she speaks life into me but because I see my friend achieve her goals by following God with so much steadfast faith. It's not just the things she says that inspire me, it's how she lives her life. By watching her walk out the plan that God has for her life, she makes me want to be a better person.

There are moments when life will feel lonely, when friends disappoint you, and you get left out of the Friday night plans. There are friends who are jealous of your success, friends who ridicule you behind your back, friends who belittle you, and friends that leave you when you are in your most vulnerable states. And maybe you're reading this and thinking that you wish you had friend like Theresa. To have a friend that models a Godly life for you to witness and picks up your spirit when you are around them, and man, I really hope you all find a friend like Theresa and learn to value and love them the way I have learned to value and love her. But friend, there is a friend far greater than Theresa, far greater than me, and far greater than you.

Oh what a friend we have in Jesus. The type of friend that never leaves us nor forsakes us. Who celebrates us, encourages us and sticks closer than a brother. Instead of talking about all the things we do wrong to The Father, he intercedes for us on our behalf, talk about someone truly having your back! Jesus is our ultimate friend and just like Jesus overflow us with blessings like giving us friends like Theresa, he also promises us entirety with Him. A forever friendship with our Father, what a gift!