Finding Meaningful Friendships

 

A British publication once offered a prize for the best definition of a friend. Among the thousands of answers received were the following: "One who multiplies joys, divides grief, and whose honesty is inviolable." "One who understands our silence." "A volume of sympathy bound in cloth." "A watch that beats true for all time and never runs down." 

The winning definition read: "A friend is the one who comes in when the whole world has gone out."

Many of us find the search for friendship all too familiar. We all desire people in our little corner of the world who love and support us. In some seasons of life, friendships seem to come naturally with hardly any effort at all. During the school year, we may hit it off with someone we sat next to in class.

Great siblings and co-workers can be an easy way to make connections with other people. However, there are times in our lives when relationships drift and the thought of investing in another friendship can become a daunting task. Oftentimes we begin to question ourselves and our own ability to develop friendships. The throws of life and busy seasons may lead us to neglect maintaining our relationships.

Each one of us will go through times when our friendships seem to falter. There are great challenges in today’s world when it comes to finding consistent and Godly friends. Some of these challenges may include busyness, unrealistic expectations, and misplaced intentionality. When we get busy, we try to get everything done, but we somehow manage to keep adding to the to-do list. While there is nothing wrong with keeping a busy schedule, it can become a problem if we do not have proper time management. There will be times when we over-commit ourselves, and we have to reschedule a coffee date or fun shopping day. Remember, it’s okay to take a rain check. 

Friendship isn’t meant to be full of grand gestures of kindness. The small gestures are just as meaningful and are a lot more practical. It goes a long way to simply send an encouraging text or send someone a note in the mail. This is where having the right attitude and perspective on friendship helps us. Let’s face it, life is busy and people will fall short. We must remember that friendship is more than about finding someone who will meet our every need. Having realistic expectations about your friends is extremely important and creates a lot of space for grace!

The Bible teaches us to “do unto others as you would have done unto you.” If we simply treat others with the same love and compassion that we desire to be treated with, we will have no problem building life-long friendships. Be the friend that you would want to have!

Friendships will come and go, it’s just a part of being human. As Christians, we know that we have “a friend that sticks closer than a brother.” While we search for meaningful friendships on earth, may they each point us to the hope of the world, Jesus Christ.