The Value of True Friendship

Dear Reader,

I've been doing much pondering over the past few weeks since my last blog. I continue to suffer from chronic health issues which I won't go into here. Many questions linger regarding the "whys and wherefores" concerning so many issues surrounding my illness including the acceptance of new physical limitations being forced upon me.

I was talking with a very dear friend of mine the other day. We have been mutually very supportive of each other over the past several years. One thing about this friend is that she is a "straight shooter" and tells it like it is. I don't always like to hear what is being said and yet deep down in my heart, I know that her intuition and objective perspective regarding the issue being discussed is usually correct.

We had one of those discussions the other day and I must say that I have been reflecting upon our conversation. One of the issues that we discussed was that of giving into a "victim's mentality". I had never viewed myself as giving into that emotion however, as I have been reflecting upon the thoughts shared by my friend, I realize that I WAS entertaining a victim's mentality regarding my illness and difficult situation that I find myself in.

Since our conversation, I have become more aware of this tendency in my life and am searching God's Word for answers. Life is not always fair and problems, sickness, sorrows, disappointments, changes, etc... all occur sometimes in an instant and leave us feeling totally out of control.

After talking with my friend, I realized that part of the problem was that it was I who was attempting to be in control instead of allowing GOD to control my life and situation. When suddenly faced with a situation in which I had NO control is when I began to entertain the "victim mentality"... feeling sorry for myself and constantly focusing upon the things I could no longer do instead of focusing on the things that I still CAN do as well as those things God desires to do in my behalf if I let Him.

I thank God for a friend who is willing to be a "straight shooter". It is always easier to say what a person WANTS to hear instead of what they NEED to hear. My friend cares enough to share with me what I NEED to hear even though it may be difficult at the time.

How about you?? Do you have a friend who cares enough to tell you the TRUTH?? If so, are you willing to listen and accept the truth even though it may not be pleasant to hear or do you get defensive?? What kind of friend are YOU??? Are there people in your life that need a TRUE friend??? If so, are YOU willing to be that true friend and stand in the gap??

Our society today is in short supply of "TRUE FRIENDS". It is not easy to be one and certainly not easy to find one. If you have a true friend, count yourself very blessed and strive to be a true friend in return.

On the other hand, if you find yourself coming up short of true and lasting friends, first I would suggest that you examine what type of friend YOU are because I firmly believe that to have friends one needs to BE a friend. So it is with TRUE friendships, if we expect and desire a true friendship, we need to exhibit that trait in our own lives as well.

Of course, Christ is our greatest friend and he will never fail us nor forsake us, but God knows the importance of having human friendships as well.

Let's not forsake the importance of developing true and caring friendships. It is well worth the effort and creates an environment where we can help one another through this journey called LIFE.