The topic of friendship has come up in at least 3 different areas in my life in one week.  When that tends to happen – that I can find a running theme in several areas of my life – I try to take notice, pray and then usually act because God is moving.  This week is no exception.  The running theme is friendship.  Now, this might sound a little junior high-ish but God has really highlighted something in my life I need to change.

I am, for the most part, an introvert.  I like my time to do with what I like.  I feel uncomfortable in large crowds, and, well, I struggle with friendships.  So this hits home for me.  I have a very close friend who lives out of state, and then I have a whole bunch of arms-length friendships that are more like acquaintances than true friends.  I have blamed that on being busy, being in ministry, being a mom – three busy teens! But the truth is, it is easier to keep busy than to open up and be vulnerable with someone. This, however, is not good.  Not good at all.

God speaks to me at the weirdest times.  While I am in the middle of making dinner I felt him ask why I don’t have deep friendships?  Uh, because as you can clearly see, I am busy God.  Then in my bible study reading, He takes me to the story of the Good Samaritan; then to the story of Mary and Martha; and lastly to the man who got lowered through the roof to have Jesus pray for him.

What do all 3 stories have to do with each other?   Busy people and people in need. The first one – the Good Samaritan. There is a man who is in need of help. He’s beaten and left alone.  The Priest crosses the road as to not walk right by but pass by at a distance. The Levite does the same.  The Samaritan is the one who stops.  I doubt in the bible times people went on walks for exercise sake.  Each one of these people had somewhere they were coming from and going to.  They had plans for the day – things they needed to do, people they needed to meet with, and so the list goes on.  Sounds like us.  We all have places to be, people to meet with, activities to accomplish all day long.  But are we all so busy we can’t stop and help the person right in front of us who is in need? Do we really live lives so full that something can’t be bumped back ½ an hour to call that person who needs encouragement rather than send a text which we don’t even have time to type so we instead send a voice to text message?

What about Mary and Martha.  Are we so concerned with how our house looks that we never invite anyone over because we don’t have the time to make it look perfect (which by the way no one expects or even notices)?  Or are we so consumed by our time with Jesus we won’t make time to pray or bring our neighbors into the presences of Jesus with us?

Lastly, the man who is paralyzed.  His friends! Wow, those guys were devoted friends.  I find myself, if I am honest, longing for this type of friendship.  For devoted friends who will stop at nothing to see me become all that God has for me. Friends who will help me, pray with me, and lead me straight Jesus, regardless of obstacles in the way. I mean they had a literal roof in their way! What do I have – maybe a dirty house or a bible study where I have only gotten to day 3 out of 5?

I want to be that kind of friend and I want friends like that.  So when God asked why I don’t have deep friendships, the answer is because I don’t take the time. I don’t acknowledge the need for others. I don’t want to risk being open and honest with ladies and not have it returned.  Then one by one, God reminded me of people in my life who I know need a friend right now.  Someone they can count on; someone who needs a Samaritan to help in a practical way; someone who needs a Mary to pray for them and a friend who will rip the roof off to help them get to the feet of Jesus.

So I decided to take the bold act of inviting a group of people who don’t really know each other yet (but all know me and all love Jesus) to get together once a month at my house.  I know that realistically not all of them will make it every time.  But I am offering my home and my friendship with a gentle reminder that they, too, need friends.  They, too, need a Samaritan and to be a Samaritan to someone else.  They need a Mary to pray for them, and they need to be a Mary and pray for someone else.  They need friends who want to see them healed and made whole at the feet of Jesus, and they need to be the one who brings others to those same feet.

So I ask you – how are you being the Samaritan, a Mary, and the friends who bring their hurting friend to Jesus in your life?  Who is doing those things for you?

Friendships are risky.  They do take time. But we are called to live in community not isolation.  We are called to carry one another’s burdens.  We are told to pray for one another, encourage one another, to spur one another to good deeds.

Yes, friendships are hard but needed.  Yes, life is busy, but it should never be so busy that we fail to make time for others. Find some small way to make an effort in the area of friendship and I bet you will be blessed more than you could imagine.

I’d love to hear how you do friendships in your life.  Leave a comment and pass on your tips for keeping, making time for, and building new friendships.

Have you ever felt like the Christian life isn’t worth it? Is it too hard with sometimes seemingly little results?
While being a Christian in the world today can be hard and in some places very costly, I believe there is a cure for those days when it is too overwhelming.
It is ok to feel like it is hard to live a life that honors God. Others in the Bible felt the same way. David has asked God why it was hard and where had God gone in those times.
Job defiantly asked, “Why am I doing this? When will it ever get easier?”
Jeremiah asked those questions and shared his state of ‘burnout” with the Lord. The list goes on. The point of this blog isn’t that it’s ok to feel like giving up because everyone does. It’s about how to recognize those feelings quickly and get back on the straight and narrow path the Lord has called you to.
In a season when things were hard, ministry felt hard, and I wasn’t seeing any results from what I was doing; I read these verses in my devotions – Galatians 6:10-12:
“For God is not unjust so as to overlook your work and the love that you have shown for His name in serving the saints, as you still do. And we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness to have the full assurance of hope until the end, so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.”
These verses are not just for those who are pastors or work in the church. We are all called to ministry at some level. We are Christ’s ambassadors on Earth. We are called to share His love with those who don’t know Him yet and encourage those who already walk with Him.
The word unjust means “A violation of God’s standards; to be found wrong in the courts of heaven.” It is impossible for Christ to overlook our work. It goes directly against His character and nature and would be breaking one of His own heavenly rules.
We know He will always see our service even in those times when we FEEL like no one knows what we are doing or how we are serving. GOD always SEES!
The word earnestness means “Speedy diligence; one’s best.” For the believer it means quickly obeying what the Lord reveals is His priority. This elevates the better over the good – the most important over the important.
In those times when we feel burned out, it could be that we have missed the leading of the Lord to shift ever so slightly our focus of what the most important is at that moment. When we know we are focusing on the exact thing God wants, then we go back to the idea that He sees us. He acknowledges our hard work.
The word sluggish means “To become spiritually dull.” In my own wording, sluggish is what burnout feels like.
Do you want to know how we defeat the enemy? We remind him and ourselves that God sees our efforts. We stop the lie that says no one cares that you are doing (you fill in the blank) for the kingdom. No one would even notice if you stopped doing this. This is a lie because according to Galatians 6:10 the Lord sees, and He trumps everyone and everything else that tells us differently.
We must seek God and ask Him to tell us His priorities in our lives and ask Him where He wants us to spend our energies for this season. We must be continually seeking Him in this area so that our hope doesn’t grow dim and fade away.
When we do this, we will not become sluggish. We will refresh ourselves and become people who have great faith that we will inherit the promises God has confirmed to us in His word.