Friendship is more than an optional extra. It is a need each of us has. We need to receive and give friendship.
Without it we will not grow to be the people that disciples of Jesus should grow to be.
After all. Jesus had friends. He needed friends, and he needed to be a friend.
How can anyone who lives as a disciple of Jesus think they can ignore those needs in their lives?
From Bryan Loritts at J.D. Greear’s blog:
I’ve seen a lot of men wreck their lives. It’s heartbreaking, and it’s scary because I am no better. I’ve seen many pastors even allow a pattern of sin to stain a lifetime’s worth of work. If you were to ask me what the common denominator was to just about all of these failures, especially among leaders, I’d say without hesitation they had no friends. Oh sure, they talked about their “friends.” And I’ve been introduced as their “friend” only to think, “No we’re not. We talk maybe once a year.” Too many times I’ve found myself thinking on my way to the stage right after they’d introduced me as their friend, “If that’s friendship, you’re in bad shape.”
If the Bible, prayer, God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit were all we needed in life, then why did God look at Adam and say it’s not good for him to be alone, and then create Eve to be his companion? Why do we read in the Scriptures that to isolate ourselves is equivalent to foolishness? Tell me, why are there over a hundred “one another” verses in the New Testament? And why did Jesus have his happy few of Peter, James, and John?
Friendship is one of the deepest and most pervasive longings of our hearts. Maintaining friendships can be one of the deepest and most pervasive frustrations of our hearts.
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