You've Got a Friend in Me!

 “A friend loves at all times” - Proverbs 17:17

Lucy and Ethel.  Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn.  Woody and Buzz Lightyear.  These are just a few of the many examples of friendships that we see on television/movies or read about in books.  Here are friends that laugh together, work together, and yes, even get in trouble together; if these friendships were real, I think they would most definitely be friendships that last a lifetime.

I am SO thankful for my friends.  They offer encouragement, advice, a listening ear, and a huge hug.  Some I’ve known for a long time and others I’ve only known for a few years.  Some are older than me (no…I didn’t say they were old… J) and others are my age.  Some I get to see often and others not as often as we both wish.  No matter who they are or where in the world they are, my friends are individuals who are a text/call/Facebook message away and I know they will be there to rejoice, laugh, cry, and/or pray with me about whatever is going on in my life.  My dear friends are individuals who truly take Proverbs 17:17 to heart and “love [me] at all times” and I pray I can be as good a friend to them as they are to me.

Did you know that as believers we all have a mutual friend who is one that “loves at all times?”  This person is my friend and your friend and even the friend of people we don’t even know!  The awesome thing about this friend is that He is with you no matter where you are or what you’re going through.  If you’re by yourself, He’s there.  If you’re with other friends, He’s there.  He never changes.  He is the same yesterday, today, and forever!  No matter what is going on in our lives, He promises to never leave us or forsake us.  All we need to do is to stay in constant communication with Him (through prayer and Bible study) and He will direct and help us.  His name?  Jesus.  “What a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear.  What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer.”  Thank you Jesus for being our everlasting friend.

Do you have someone who has been with you through thick and thin?  Offered advice in a time of need?  Laughed at your not-so-funny joke?  Rejoiced with you in the good times?  If so, these are people who have “loved you at all times.”  Take a minute to pull out your phone or write them a message letting them know how much they mean to you…it doesn’t have to be long or wordy.  Let your message come from the heart.  Be the friend to them that they are to you.