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Topics: Friends, Jesus
"Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends."
John 15:13
Real friends are hard to come by. Especially close friends. But God has been so faithful to me over the years to place someone in my life who has been a dear friend to me. Maybe you've got someone like this in your life as well.
Now, my best friend and I don't always see eye to eye on things. He's the most optimistic person that I have ever met, while I sometimes look at things with pessimistic eyes. It doesn't seem to matter what my situation is, he always encourages me to look on the bright side. Just the other day I was having some problems with my blood pressure and I happened to mention it to him. You know what he said, "God knows about your blood pressure. Stop worrying and trust Him." I already knew that, but somehow hearing it again cheered me up.
And it's not just the cheery outlook on things that makes my buddy a great friend, but he also is quick to take a hard stand for always doing God's will, even at the risk of making me mad at him. For instance, I thought about doing something that I know I shouldn't do and he came right out and told me to my face that a Christian ought not to do that. That really steamed me. But, after I calmed down, I realized again that he was right.
You find out a lot about your friends when you are going through a hardship
and my best friend has seen me through a lot of tough times. Ever since we met back in high school, he's been there for me. When I was in a near fatal car wreck, the first voice I heard when I came to was his. When my grandfather and then my grandmother passed away, he was there to share my grief. When I struggled financially during college, he helped me make ends meet. When my car tore up, he helped me get a new one. It just didn't matter when I needed him, day or night, he would always make time for me.
Friends also are there for you during the good times, the high points in life.
When I married my beautiful wife, Paula, my best friend was right there with
us at the service. Sometimes I get kind of jealous, he seems to care as much
about her as he does me. He's the one who suggested that I share the gospel with my grandfather, and sure enough my grandfather got saved that day! He reads through my devotionals that I write, giving me suggestions on how to improve them or ideas to make them more useful to my readers. He's just a great guy. God has really blessed me.
When I have needed advice for difficult decisions, he always gives me honest feedback, even when it's something I don't really want to here. When I get discouraged about lack of results from my ministry, my best friend reminds me that faithfulness to God is what really counts. If I am unhappy, he always thinks to ask me why.
Through the years my best friend has been through it all with me, thick and
thin, good and bad. He has been such a dear friend to me, and I know why he has been such an important part of my life. Even though it's not "macho" to show a man how much you care about him, he has always let me know that he loves me. I know there's nothing that he wouldn't do for me. That's important.
Well, enough rattling on. I just wanted to tell you about my best friend.
Oh, by the way, I think you know him. His name is Jesus.
Have a "Wonderful DAY in Christ,"
Jimmy D. Brown