Sorry I was having a moment!
Obviously we know what is on my mind today! God put it on my heart to write about friendships...
How to know the real from the fake...
How to be a good friend....
How to make those relationships glorify God...
What does the bible say about friends?
All of these things are so relevant to our walk with Christ! We often forget that friendships are a huge part of our Christian walk because they come so freely and naturally ( for some people). God loves us to fellowship with one another!
I was having a conversation with two of my really good friends last night and our conversation got pretty deep and heavy. My friend started pouring out her heart to us and telling us some things she has been dealing with in her walk with Christ and just in her life in general. For a moment... the room got silent and you could feel the atmosphere just grow heavy. My heart broke for her and what she was going through.. but it was what my other friend said that will stick with me FOREVER.
( we will call them friend 1 and friend 2 for the purposes of keeping privacy and so no one gets confused in this story!)
After friend 1 told us her struggles, friend 2 started really crying! It was not like a fake.. " Oh I am crying because this is so sad" type of cry. It was a HEART cry! Friend 2 was crying because her heart was truly breaking for someone she loved so much! Friend 2 began telling friend 1 that she felt her pain because she loved her that much.
" I love my friends so much that when you all hurt, I really hurt DEEP."
Friend 2 really touched my heart with that statement!
It blessed me to watch my friends cry together over something that only one of them was going through! I was not blessed because they were crying having " girly" moments lol... I was blessed because I saw what TRUE love was all about .. in that moment.. with my friends.
The bible says:
John 15:13 NIV
"Greater Love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends."
"Greater Love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends."
In that moment.. friend 2 laid down her life for friend 1 .. so to speak. She felt the true hurt and pain and she cried out for her! A true friend will get on their knees before God and cry out for you and you should be doing the same for them. I could truly hear the sincerity in the conversation between my friends and the love in their voices. Friend 2 stopped and had us all pray together over our friendships and our other friendships asking God for peace, and help with every situation.
To be a good friend you have to be willing to lay it all down for them. You have to be selfless and willing to give up some things for your friends. Christ demonstrated the ultimate friendship with us. He laid His life down.. literally... He sacrificed everything for us... and He is selfless.. He loves us with our flaws and all. We have to make sure our friendships look like our relationship with Christ. Proverbs17:17 NIV
"A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity "
* Make sure you are even being a friend to Christ.. are you spending time with Him? Are you learning and growing with Him? are you listening to Him speak? Or is your friendship all about you? do a heart check!
James 4:8 NIV
"Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded"
"Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded"
Proverbs 18:24 NIV says:
"A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother."
"A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother."
We should have friendships that are FAMILY! Your friends should be rocking with you in whatever season you are in! They STICK closer than a brother! To stick to something means to cleave to... hold fast.. or adhere! If your friends are STICKING.. they ain't trying to go ANYWHERE.. they are rolling with you where you go and when you go!
Friendships should be full of purpose and have meaning. Don't call everyone your "friend." Now I am not saying don't be nice to everyone... If you are ONLY nice to your friends. you have a LOVE issue.. and you need to check that! I am saying that EVERYBODY is not meant to be by your side on your journey! Christ has purpose for every aspect of our lives.. that includes who you kick it with! If you are not building each other up, encouraging each other to draw closer to God, and showing love in every situation yall go through together.. MOVE ON! God does not need our friends to be a hindrance to our walk with Him! Ultimately.. God is super jealous... He wants you to have people to hold you accountable and keep you on track but remain in the ultimate goal and that is to worship Christ with your ENTIRE LIFE!
Proverbs 12:26 NIV
"A righteous man is cautious in friendship, but the way of the wicked leads them astray."
"A righteous man is cautious in friendship, but the way of the wicked leads them astray."
Proverbs 27:17 NIV
"As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another "
"As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another "
Are your friends sharpening you? Better yet.. lets self-evaluate! Are you sharpening them? HELP your friends! God placed yall together for a reason! Love on them... show them Christ in you daily.. and let them know you truly care! DO NOT let your friends be DULL! God ain't got time for you to play games! Yall should be going hard for the kingdom TOGETHER! Quit trying to outshine them.. and let your light shine TOGETHER..darkness flees quicker with two lights! :)
"Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work; If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!"
Proverbs 15:22 NIV
"Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed. "
"Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed. "
God places people in your life to help you and for you to help them! We all need help from other people.. that is why fellowship and communion with each other is so important to God! It is easier to have a friend who can hold your arms up when you get tired just like aaron did for moses!( Exodus 17:12)
( read that parable ) . Your friends should be holding your hands up for you when you get tired and too weak to hold them up for yourself and vice versa! Get some ARM holders in your circle.. figure out who you can count on to be there for you! PRAY over your friendships and seek God's face on how to deal with them and properly handle them!
Right after you read this post I REALLY urge you to go get in your quiet time with God and start praying for all of your friends! If they pop in your head.. PRAY and pray dilligently for them! Be the friend who keeps them covered in Christ's blood daily! Pray that God gives yall guidance and counsel so that you can be helpful to eachother's life and bennifical to the kingdom TOGETHER!
Go love on your friends today!
Tell them how much they mean to you and care!
My friends mean so much to me! They are a sign that God is so in love with me that He feels it is necessary to give me AMAZING support through my friends! It also shows His trust for me to keep them accountable and to love on them just as Christ loves on me!
Go out and SHOW love in your relationships! Do not take them for granted.. God gave them to you!
GOd is CRAZY CRAZY CRAZY in love with YOU! You are His precious child!
LOVE YOU!
Nicole L.
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