A True Friend

Proverbs 17:17 “A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.”

We begin making acquaintances and developing relationships at a very young age–often on the playground or in a classroom. Eventually, our friendships settle into categories based on the depth of the relationship. We have people we chat with, people we work with, people we live near. Then we have our close friends. These are the people that we do life with. The people we talk to regularly. The people we trust. The people we share our hurts, fears and doubts with. Our true friends. Some have many, some have few, but a person is rich to have at least one person in his or her life who “loves at all times.” These relationships are “born for adversity.” Difficulty comes to us all, and when it does, this kind of companionship is critical to our survival. It’s one of the reasons we encourage people to form and join small groups–to deepen the connections we need in order to encourage and pray for one another. Of course, there are times when even the closest of human friendships is not enough to sustain us. At those times, we are reminded that “there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.” (Proverbs 18:24). The only truly 100% reliable relationship in the universe is the one between Christ and those He saves. “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” Jesus Christ did that for us. He is better than the best friend you have ever had. He is closer than your most trusted sibling. He is the God of the universe, who became flesh, and sacrificed everything to give you life.

-Pastor Mike