Day 36: No Greater Love ~ Building Bridges of Friendship,

Part Three: A Sheltering Friendship

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Proverbs 19:20
“Listen to advice and accept instruction,

that you may gain wisdom in the future.”

The following quote from an unknown author speaks profound truth:?“To be a ‘safe place’ for others, one must have an open heart and a closed mouth.“? At the mid-point of our marriage, my husband and I discovered a strategy for communication. When I come to him with a problem I am dealing with, he asks this question so he can listen appropriately,?“Are you looking for sympathy or a solution?”?Many times, all I need to feel better is to voice the problem out loud, get a big bear hug from him, and move on. Other times I really do need his advice and am eager to hear his viewpoint.

This strategy works with friendships as well. We all want to be given an opportunity to be heard but, when the shoe is on the other foot, do we have a problem being a good listener or do we have a tendency to dominate the conversation? Are we guilty of interjecting a quick response, offering solutions rather than sympathy?

A more serious breach may involve a betrayal by a friend we trusted with what we thought was a confidential conversation. A study in Psychology Today* found that betrayal is the most common reason for the death of a friendship. We must always remember that invariably people will let us down at some point but Christ never will, so our faith should be in Him and not in any man or woman. Nevertheless, we all crave a safe, sheltering friendship, a place to share our emotions without being judged, a place to cry it out, a place to join together in prayer, and a friend with “skin on.” We desire a safe place to leave these things, entrusted to a sheltering friend who will not allow confidences to go any further, one who is trustworthy, to whom we can say anything and not worry that the information will be turned against us. Let us be known as sheltering friends who incline listening ears to hear, extend secure hands to hold, speak affirming words to lift up, and offer faithful prayers to the Father.

Heavenly Father, we praise You that because of our faith in Christ, You consider us Your friends. Thank You that You are the One who will listen, answer our prayers, and will never betray us. Thank you that in Christ we have the perfect sheltering friend in the storms of life. To You we lift our praise. Amen.

* “The Friendship Bond,” published in Psychology Today, October, 1979 p. 43
~ painting by Emily Mary Osborn

Evensong

Day 35: No Greater Love: Building Bridges of Friendship, Part II – a Secure Friendship

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1 Corinthians 3: 10-11

“According to the grace of God, which was given to me, like a wise master builder, I laid a foundation, and another is building on it. But each man must be careful how he builds on it. For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.”

The orders from the Navy sending us to England for exchange duty with the Royal Navy gave us only two weeks to pack up our family’s belongings, find a new home for our little dachshund, say our goodbyes to friends and family, and fly into the great unknown. As brand new Christians, we were leaving behind an invaluable support system of friends who had helped to guide our first baby steps of faith. With a limited amount of time to prepare, we knew little what to expect, where we would live and if anyone would be there to greet us and give us some direction. By God’s gracious care, we were met by another Navy friend, Bill, also on exchange who, along with his wife, Marty, who were both Christians and more than eager to help us get settled in right next door to them! During those years, Marty offered me friendship, discipleship and mentoring built upon a shared, secure foundation.

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Any friendship is only as good as its foundation. Before becoming the type of friend God desires us to be, we must have a secure foundation on Jesus Christ. God has specific laws for building solid structures that also apply to building solid relationships. Our scripture passage for today reminds us that, “Each one should be careful how he builds. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.”

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We live in a fallen world as a result of sin entering the world through Adam and Eve. The breach caused by sin hurt their relationship as man and wife as well as their relationship with their Father God. That same sin brought mistrust, greed, betrayal, resentment, and fear which has created a chasm between human beings ever since. But, there is Good News! Built into the foundation of the world was the Cross of Christ—a BRIDGE—that gives us a way back to the faithful, unconditional love of God when we place our faith in Jesus. Building our relationships and our friendships on the solid foundation of Jesus Christ, provides a safer and more secure footing. Friendships can reap wonderful blessings, but the surest friendship we have can only be found in Jesus!

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May this beautiful song by Charles Wesley be our prayer today:

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Jesus, my Savior, Brother, Friend,

On whom I cast my every care,

On whom for all things I depend,

Inspire, and then accept my prayer.

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If I have tasted of Thy grace,

The grace that sure salvation brings;

If with me now Thy Spirit stays,

And hov’ring hides me in His wings.

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Still let Him with my weakness stay,

Nor for a moment’s space depart;

Evil and danger turn away,

And keep, till He renews my heart.

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When to the right or left I stray,

His voice behind me may I hear,

“Return, and walk in Christ Thy way,

Fly back to Christ, for sin is near.”

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Jesus, I fain would walk in Thee,

From nature’s every path retreat;

Thou art my way, my leader be,

And set upon the rock my feet.

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Uphold me, Savior, or I fall;

O reach me out Thy gracious hand:

Only on Thee for help I call;

Only by faith in Thee I stand. Amen

Day 34: No Greater Love ~

Building Bridges of Friendship, Part One

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John 15:13-17
“Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are My friends if you do what I command. 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. You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in My name the Father will give you. This is My command: Love each other.”

As I get older—probably by virtue of the fact that I have lived longer and continue to meet new people—I have a beautiful bounty of friends, some new, some cherished for years, some local and others long-distance friends. My dearest friend has been a long-distance friend for 37 years. For many of those years we managed only once-a-year visits with long talks on the phone every month or so, but our limited times have always been purposeful, meaningful, and a worthwhile investment.

My guess is that most would agree that having devoted, loyal friends is a pretty important part of life. But, do we sometimes look upon the time we spend with a friend as a luxury, a reward after getting everything else done, as a lovely extravagance to fill idle hours and enhance our enjoyment? In days when we run from the urgent to the imperative, using e-mails, Zoom, texts, messenger, Instagram, Amazon, microwaves, and remote controls, many of us find we don’t get around to this “luxury” often enough, though we intend to. However, there is no way Amazon can mail you a friend. Many of us will never invest the time or take the risk of building lasting friendships until we are convinced they are essential, not an extra.

Jesus’ years of ministry on earth leave little doubt that loving others and investing time and energy in their lives was His number one priority—more important than earning an income, owning a home, or living to retirement age with a healthy nest egg! He chose twelve common men and loved them so effectively that He transformed them from sinners to saints, from enemies to friends of God. Together they fished, ate, walked, talked, worked, celebrated, slept, taught, traveled, rejoiced, cried, prayed, and grew. Jesus made friends with the lovely and the unlovely, loved and unloved, the poor, wealthy, sick, healthy, religious, and influential. His love for others was and still is redemptive, healing, and life-changing.

In Him, our love for one another can be the same. To do that, we must be committed to building bridges of love and friendship as He was committed to building His bridge of love to us. In the coming days, I’ll be sharing ways we can extend this love—this bridge-building love—with friends the way Jesus has done for us.

Dear Father, thank You for sending Jesus, our greatest friend, to be the bridge to life, love, and friendship. May we be reminded each day that He gave us the model for true, faithful, lasting friendships. Help us to be the kind of friend who puts others’ needs above our own. In the name of Jesus, our best friend. Amen.
~ painting source unknown

February 2, 2025

Philippians 4:19

Today's Scripture

And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus. -Philippians 4:19

Today’s Scripture doesn’t say, “My God shall give me what I want.” It says that He’ll supply all my needs. I need a Savior. I need someone to wash sin out of my life. I need a scapegoat who can bear the guilt of my transgressions and iniquity and die in substitution of what I deserve. I don’t get what I want. But thank God, He loves me so much that He gives me the supplies I need.

I don’t know what you want in your life today, but I know that if you need something, Jesus Christ is all-sufficient. Jesus Christ is El Shaddai. He is a way maker. He is a yoke and bondage breaker. He is the Prince of Peace who can soothe your tormented mind. He is the Provider who can open up the windows of heaven and shower you with blessings that you cannot contain. He is the Healer who can touch a sick body and make it strong again. He is the Banner in battle who will give you victory when defeat looks imminent. Stop begging God for what you want and start praising God that He has supplied your every need according to His riches in glory!

Blessing

I thank You that You’re in this place, and that with our hands lifted and our hearts extended, we can, in faith, reach out and touch You. I thank You, Father, that in reaching for You, You have already reached toward us and given us blessings which are limitless and know no measure. Bless us, Father, with physical strength and divine healing. Bless us, Father, with goodness and mercy that follows us all the days of our lives. Let Your loving kindness and provision be upon us that we would have sufficiency for every good work, and the world would recognize that our Father in heaven is a loving King who provides for His own. We bless You, Lord Jesus; we thank You for Your Word. We stand upon it as the living promise of God that sickness is defeated, sin is destroyed, and we the children of God, live life without limit because You are our King. In Jesus’ name, we receive the blessing. In faith believing, we receive Your answer.

Today's Bible Reading:?

Old Testament

New Testament?

Psalms & Proverbs