Here
is Pastor Karen's devotion today:
Good afternoon!
What does it mean to be someone’s friend?
On Facebook, a friend is someone you trust enough to permit them to read your posts and someone who allows you to do the same. A Facebook “friend” is supposed to be someone you know really well, but this isn’t always the case. Sometimes your “friend” may be a distant relative or more of an acquaintance than a “bosom buddy." They
may even be a sister or friend of a friend or your friend’s mother or sister.
On Facebook, then, friend, relative or acquaintance—they’re all “friends.” Unless they aren’t—and that’s when you “unfriend” them and block them from posting on your page. You have to be careful!
And this is what we expect with Facebook. We don’t trust all of our FB friends with the intimate details of our lives. Nor would we want to know the intimate details about everyone else’s lives, either.
In Ecclesiasticus, the author seems to be able to see into the future and know about Facebook! He understood that it is good to have many friends and to be friendly with all people. But, he warns, let your closest friends and advisers be few and choose them with care. Beware of people who only seem to be your friends or people we might call “fair weather” friends—people who “love” you when everything is going great in your life, but abandon you or turn against you when you need their love the most:
“Pleasant speech multiplies friends,
and a gracious tongue multiplies courtesies.
Let those who are friendly with you be many,
but let your advisers be one in a thousand.
When you gain friends, gain them through testing,
and do not trust them hastily.
For there are friends who are such when it suits them,
but they will not stand by you in time of trouble.
And there are friends who change into enemies,
and tell of the quarrel to your disgrace.
And there are friends who sit at your table,
but they will not stand by you in time of trouble.
When you are prosperous, they become your second self,
and lord it over your servants;
but if you are brought low, they turn against you,
and hide themselves from you.
Keep away from your enemies,
and be on guard with your friends.”
I have to say that I have been blessed with good friends in my lifetime—people who have encouraged me all along this journey of faith. Perhaps there have been a few “fair weather” friends, but then I knew that throughout our relationship, so I didn’t share intimate details of my life with them or leave myself vulnerable to them.
I believe the Lord will lead us to be friends with people who may not always return our love for them. And that’s what being a Christian is all about. That’s what Jesus meant when he told us to love our neighbors as our ourselves and also to love our enemies. It’s what we do as people of faith--out of obedience to Christ.
People will hurt us sometimes, without even meaning to. We just have to learn to forgive quickly and not hold it against them. We all make mistakes—and we all can have a bad day. Let us have grace for one another and not expect perfection of even our closest friends. We are human!
Ecclesiasticus assures us that there will be true friends along this road of life—people we can and should trust—because we need friends. This is how God made us—to love and care for one another, through good times and bad.
Those who “fear the Lord” will find good friends. And the Lord will “direct their friendship”:
“Faithful friends are a sturdy shelter:
whoever finds one has found a treasure.
Faithful friends are beyond price;
no amount can balance their worth.
Faithful friends are life-saving medicine;
and those who fear the Lord will find them.
Those who fear the Lord direct their friendship aright,
for as they are, so are their neighbors also."
If you are wondering who you can trust, ask the Lord to reveal your true friends. There may only be 1—and that’s OK, too! And ask the Lord to guard your heart so you will not be hurt if someone isn’t really a true friend like you hoped they would be—someone who will love you in good times and bad.
Be patient and the Lord will provide you with the friend that you need!
Will you pray with me?
Heavenly Father, Thank you for understanding our need for friends and bringing loving people into our lives. Help us to be a good friend to someone else. Give us the patience, compassion, and love to stick by someone who may be struggling through a difficult time in their life. Teach us to love without assuming that love will always be returned. Show us how to forgive quickly when people have hurt our feelings, sometimes without even knowing they have hurt us. Remind us that we are all just sinners who need our Savior, Jesus Christ. None of us are perfect—only the One who gave His life so we may live eternally with You. In Christ’s name we pray. Amen.
Today’s readings are Ecclesiasticus 6:5-17; Revelation 7:9-17; Luke 10:1-16; Psalm 26 and 28.
Blessings in Christ!
Pastor Karen
Good afternoon!
What does it mean to be someone’s friend?
On Facebook, a friend is someone you trust enough to permit them to read your posts and someone who allows you to do the same. A Facebook “friend” is supposed to be someone you know really well, but this isn’t always the case. Sometimes your “friend” may be a distant relative or more of an acquaintance than a “bosom buddy." They
may even be a sister or friend of a friend or your friend’s mother or sister.
On Facebook, then, friend, relative or acquaintance—they’re all “friends.” Unless they aren’t—and that’s when you “unfriend” them and block them from posting on your page. You have to be careful!
And this is what we expect with Facebook. We don’t trust all of our FB friends with the intimate details of our lives. Nor would we want to know the intimate details about everyone else’s lives, either.
In Ecclesiasticus, the author seems to be able to see into the future and know about Facebook! He understood that it is good to have many friends and to be friendly with all people. But, he warns, let your closest friends and advisers be few and choose them with care. Beware of people who only seem to be your friends or people we might call “fair weather” friends—people who “love” you when everything is going great in your life, but abandon you or turn against you when you need their love the most:
“Pleasant speech multiplies friends,
and a gracious tongue multiplies courtesies.
Let those who are friendly with you be many,
but let your advisers be one in a thousand.
When you gain friends, gain them through testing,
and do not trust them hastily.
For there are friends who are such when it suits them,
but they will not stand by you in time of trouble.
And there are friends who change into enemies,
and tell of the quarrel to your disgrace.
And there are friends who sit at your table,
but they will not stand by you in time of trouble.
When you are prosperous, they become your second self,
and lord it over your servants;
but if you are brought low, they turn against you,
and hide themselves from you.
Keep away from your enemies,
and be on guard with your friends.”
I have to say that I have been blessed with good friends in my lifetime—people who have encouraged me all along this journey of faith. Perhaps there have been a few “fair weather” friends, but then I knew that throughout our relationship, so I didn’t share intimate details of my life with them or leave myself vulnerable to them.
I believe the Lord will lead us to be friends with people who may not always return our love for them. And that’s what being a Christian is all about. That’s what Jesus meant when he told us to love our neighbors as our ourselves and also to love our enemies. It’s what we do as people of faith--out of obedience to Christ.
People will hurt us sometimes, without even meaning to. We just have to learn to forgive quickly and not hold it against them. We all make mistakes—and we all can have a bad day. Let us have grace for one another and not expect perfection of even our closest friends. We are human!
Ecclesiasticus assures us that there will be true friends along this road of life—people we can and should trust—because we need friends. This is how God made us—to love and care for one another, through good times and bad.
Those who “fear the Lord” will find good friends. And the Lord will “direct their friendship”:
“Faithful friends are a sturdy shelter:
whoever finds one has found a treasure.
Faithful friends are beyond price;
no amount can balance their worth.
Faithful friends are life-saving medicine;
and those who fear the Lord will find them.
Those who fear the Lord direct their friendship aright,
for as they are, so are their neighbors also."
If you are wondering who you can trust, ask the Lord to reveal your true friends. There may only be 1—and that’s OK, too! And ask the Lord to guard your heart so you will not be hurt if someone isn’t really a true friend like you hoped they would be—someone who will love you in good times and bad.
Be patient and the Lord will provide you with the friend that you need!
Will you pray with me?
Heavenly Father, Thank you for understanding our need for friends and bringing loving people into our lives. Help us to be a good friend to someone else. Give us the patience, compassion, and love to stick by someone who may be struggling through a difficult time in their life. Teach us to love without assuming that love will always be returned. Show us how to forgive quickly when people have hurt our feelings, sometimes without even knowing they have hurt us. Remind us that we are all just sinners who need our Savior, Jesus Christ. None of us are perfect—only the One who gave His life so we may live eternally with You. In Christ’s name we pray. Amen.
Today’s readings are Ecclesiasticus 6:5-17; Revelation 7:9-17; Luke 10:1-16; Psalm 26 and 28.
Blessings in Christ!
Pastor Karen
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