Be a Friend

While taking some time off, I was able to reflect on family and friends. They are to be cherished. In some cases, you may wonder if your family is a friend but you love them because they are family. On the other hand family can also be some of the best friends you have. Friends on the other hand are people you have something in common with and, in some cases, are like family to you. Proverbs 17:17 says, “A friend loveth at all times.” That friend is a person who shares the same values as you do and if we take that verse at its real meaning, then "all" means "all." No one is perfect but friends love during “all” times.

As a family, we do not often get the opportunity to spend an extended time together. While vacationing, we were able to spend some time relaxing, laughing, and enjoying the company of each other. The time we are together is time we should relish and savor since those times will not repeat in the same manner again. If someone were to stand back and look at the week, they would see a week where we had a house that was not ready when we got there and had issues (for example no TV and no internet) with it all week long…rain visited frequently and when it was not raining, the coldness set in. Everyone always envisions the perfect vacation and that rarely if ever happens but here we were together and the options were to let the problems rule us or rule the problems. We chose to seize each day and live it out to its fullness. That was a great time.

Abraham Lincoln said, "The better part of one's life consists of his friendships." Choosing friends is not to be taken lightly. A guideline for a true friend is found in 2 Corinthians 6:14: “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?” While I am not unfriendly to those who do not believe in Jesus as Savior, I cannot truly be friends with someone who does not share Godly values. They cannot offer Godly advice, our interests should conflict and the fellowship will be strained. Based on that, the friends I do have are actually my Godly family. Family and friends are to be enjoyed and protected. Seize the day and enjoy the relationships that God has given each and every one of us. In Proverbs 27:9, we read: “Ointment and perfume rejoice the heart: so doth the sweetness of a man's friend by hearty counsel.” Be a friend to someone today. Enjoy your coffee.
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Love you all,
Pastor Gary