Worthy Companions Are Mysteriously Born
Today as Landon and I film on the theme of friendship, I’m thinking of the party Hal Niedzviecki threw for his 700 Facebook friends. Here’s the end of his article:
By now it was nearing midnight. My head was clouded by drink, and it was finally starting to sink in: no one else was coming. I’d have to think up some other way to revitalize my social life. I ordered one more drink.
The beer arrived, a British import: Young’s Double Chocolate Stout. I raised my glass in a solitary toast and promised myself I’d spend less time online. Then I took a gulp: the beer was delicious but bittersweet. Seven hundred friends, and I was drinking alone.
I also read again this morning Darryl Tippens’s chapter on friendship in Pilgrim Heart
Yet we cannot accumulate friends like so many trophies. Friends are not objects to be found and collected. Our calling isn’t so much to find friends as to become friends to others. I am not even sure it is possible to “find” friends. Instead, we befriend others, and in the befriending, worthy companions are mysteriously born. As imitators of Jesus we are here to grant to others the gifts of safety, attentiveness, compassion, empathy, accountability, truth-telling, loyalty, distance, time, forgiveness, spiritual care, and selfless love. In offering such graces to others, friendships emerge.
Mike, thanks for the thoughts, these were beautiful. Reminds me how the lonliness around us in the world is a reminder of potential friendship, and the mysterious way that Jesus uses friendships to push away darkness and, I think, death. Thanks!
Amen on all points, Steven.
So what about people we just don’t like? Or who just don’t like us?
Sometimes it’s hard to be gracious and kind and patient and loving with people who are just jerks. Other than anyway, as in “do it anyway”, how are we to show Christ’s love to people who are just grumpy jerks? What’s the best way to do that?
(I’m shamelessly plugging myself here, I know, but I just talked about how I’m trying to love people that I don’t like on my blog: http://ajrasking.blogspot.com – please, please, please – read and comment!)
Aaron, I was just thinking something similar. What if you put out the effort and people are just not interested? Relationships must have starting points and if people aren’t willing to put those out there, then what? I’m blogging on this right now; it will be up later today.
Was Christ’s comment about giving a cup of water in His name modified to read, “…but only to those we can get along with or those we like?”
IMHO we are to offer our love in Christ to everyone – that’s between God and me. Their acceptance or no of that offered love is between them and God.
Paul wrote to the Roman church – “If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. ”
IOW, there will be those that simply do not want a relationship with us. Even so, we must try to live in peace with them too, as far as we are able. Relationships will also depend on the other person(s) attitudes. We still must love them in the LORD. Tough but attainable.