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FEMALE FRIENDSHIPS
Friends have an enormous impact on our spiritual walk-for
good or for evil.
- What kind of friends should we have? Certainly we should have a wise
friend for A wise friend will facilitate growth. We need a friendship
with one who will love us enough to correct us when we need it. We all
want to be praised and encouraged but we need someone to rebuke us as well.
We also need a friend who will listen and share our deepest concerns. Proverbs
15:31 says "The ear that heareth the reproof of life abideth among the wise." Proverbs
16:24 reminds us that "Pleasant words are as an honeycomb, sweet to the soul,
and health to the bones." We all love pleasant words do we not?. Emery
Nester tells the following story:
"A man was walking in a wilderness. He became lost and was unable to
find his way out. Another man met him. Sir I am lost. can you show
me the way out of this wilderness? No, said the stranger, I cannot show
you the way out of this wilderness, but maybe if I walk with you we can find
our way out together."
That ladies, is friendship. The kind of friend I would want, wouldn’t
you? One who is willing to lend a hand and help. One who will go
that extra mile. I think we can learn a lesson from this and perhaps
this week we can be a Titus woman to a young woman or teenager by writing
a note of encouragement to her, praising her for ways you have seen her live
for Christ, and encouraging her to remain strong.
- What kind of friend should I be?
One kind of friend we don’t want to be or to have for that matter are the
kind of "friends" that Job had.
Proverbs 27:9 says that ointment and perfume rejoice the heart. Romans
15:14 says "And I myself also am persuaded of you, my brethren, that ye also
are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, able also to admonish one
another." Hebrews 10:24 says "And let us consider one another to
provoke unto love and to good works." Notice the scripture says we are
to consider one another. We can’t rush in like gang busters to admonish
without consideration, love, or concern for our friend and her feelings. We
must be honest however and not agree with our friend just to keep from hurting
her feelings. Sometimes it is necessary to rebuke. We must, however,
remember to speak in love and not have a high and mighty or pious attitude. We
must show kindness and compassion. Scripture says in Galatians 6:1 that
we are to bear one another’s burden. A dear friend and former deacon
in my church was fond of saying "if I have a problem it should be your problem
too and if you have a problem then it should also be mine." That is true
friendship. Romans 12:15 says, "Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and
weep with them that weep." I read a story once about a little girl that
was late coming home from school. She had always been prompt and the
later she was the more worried and upset her mother became. When she
finally came home, her mother with an angry edge to her voice asked where
she had been. "With Sally", she replied. " She dropped her doll
and it broke in so many pieces that it couldn’t be fixed." Her mother
then demanded to know why she didn’t just come home since she couldn’t do
anything about the broken doll. The little girl looked up at her mother
and very sweetly said, "I did do something to help Sally. I cried with
her." What a lesson we can learn from that. Sometimes words are
inadequate and maybe all we can do for our friend is put our arms around her
and weep with her. Tears have a language all their own.
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