Friends

I got an email from a very good friend of mine this week. He and I haven’t talked much, or emailed much, in the last several months. In his email he was apologizing for the lack of contact. While it’s true that relationships need contact and communication, have you ever noticed that some relationships are so connected that you can be out of contact for months, or years, and pick up right where you left off?

About six months ago I renewed a friendship with someone I knew very well more than 30 years ago. Since then we have been meeting pretty regularly once a week for a long and leisurely lunch. These lunches have grown into my “church” gathering. We talk about spiritual issues and what’s happening in our everyday lives. I’m looking forward to Monday afternoon because we’ve missed the last two weeks.

I emailed a reply to my friend as follows: “There are some people that are such good friends that time can pass, and life can roll on, and the friendship is always there…Sometimes I like to think about Jesus that way, because I tend to stumble through life, sometimes, weeks and months at a time and barely remember that Jesus is my friend, or even talk to him. I remember when I first heard the song, Draw Me Close to You…It has a line, “To hear you say that I’m your friend.” The first 20 times I listened to that song, I cried.”

Living in the presence and knowledge of the friendship of God is not easy for me. I have a tendency to get caught up in the ups and downs of daily life. The next deadline, the next court appearance, the next family crisis, these all tend to grab for my attention, and I forget that Jesus is my friend. Jesus promised: “I am with you always.” When I remember this foundational fact of the life in Christ I am immediately comforted. I am not alone in the “battle” of daily living. I have a very good friend by my side.

It’s not easy to fake friendship, and who would want to? You can’t assign friendships. There is a great deal of talk these days about community and authentic relationships. One thing we know is that these two things can’t be ordered up like a Papa John’s pizza. They develop over the many years of contact between people. Friends that will serve one another, care for one another, lay down their lives for one another, these are rare. They aren’t as plentiful as Facebook friends, but it is always good to hear from them and to celebrate your friendship.

Did you grow up singing the old hymns? I did. Here are the words of one of my favorites: