How is God a Friend to Us?

birthday

I’m headed to a milestone birthday party for one of my closest gal friends tonight. When we first met almost twenty-five years ago, we had instant friend chemistry, my “sister from another mother.” Last night as we were sitting at dinner with her family, I had a melancholy moment. I realized this beautiful friend grew up in Pennsylvania, very near my estranged half-sister who I never had a sister relationship with.

new-york-city-free-picture_w520

Many years ago, when I worked in New York City, I lived three hours away from my half-sister, an easy drive to the Exton area. I called her up and asked to get together. I desperately wanted to know her better.

Dad

However, at age fourteen, my half-sister experienced trauma from our father’s death, two months before I was born, when our father dropped dead from a sudden heart attack while playing polo in San Antonio, Texas. He was only 39. After our dad’s death, my sister moved to Pennsylvania to live with her mother, so I never knew her. Unfortunately, I never did get to know her, because she wasn’t interested in seeing me, even for one meeting.

pennsylvania

The Lord already knew this was going to happen, so he provided another Pennsylvania girl to be like a sister to me. She’s a sister who knows my flaws and still loves me. I don’t wear any masks around her. I don’t fear being honest. We can talk about anything. We love to shop together, and even though we are separated by miles now, we still get together occasionally for a spin through the mall.

friendsCartoon

Do you have a friend like this?

Now imagine God as this friend.

When we go into the Lord’s presence, he wants to be like a best friend. He desires for us to be ourselves. We might as well be transparent because he sees us as we really are anyway.

Jeremiah 17:10 says, “The heart is hopelessly dark and deceitful, a puzzle that no one can figure out. But I, God, search the heart and examine the mind. I get to the heart of the human. I get to the root of things. I treat them as they really are, not as they pretend to be” (The Message).

My Friend

So why even pretend? Why be someone you are not in God’s presence? I love letting my hair down in the Lord’s presence. I am thankful I am able to discuss every aspect of my life without fear of abandonment or judgment. I can praise, rant, cry, and laugh, all in one sitting.

Today I am thankful the Lord provides friends who stick closer than a sister or brother (Proverbs 18:24) and that He is the ultimate friend.

“I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you” (John 15:5).

 

Similar Posts

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.