1 JOHN 4:20–21
I guess you could say that I have a friend complex. It probably came from hearing “Katie, you are my best friend” one day and being completely ignored the next just a few too many times. One time I got so frustrated, and I asked God why this always happened to me. He didn’t directly answer me, but my questioning got me thinking about my “friends.” They all went to church on Sunday, and would then do everything in their power to keep anyone at school from finding out how they spent their Sunday mornings. I began to realize that these friends were using people, not loving them, and gossiping about people, not encouraging them. Maybe you know what I am talking about. Maybe you’ve experienced a similar situation with people you call “friends. Or maybe you are on the other side, one of the ones using and gossiping, instead of being a good friend. Think about it. We all want true friends. I have found some friends who live out the meaning of friendship. They are passionately in love with Jesus and this love overflows to people all around them. They challenge me to be different for Christ. Are you willing to make some changes, to be challenged? Maybe for you that means learning to love like a true friend and apologizing for the ways you have failed. Or perhaps it is finding some different friends who want the love of Jesus to be obvious in their lives. Either way, let’s be the kinds of friends that we want to have.
Katie-Lee Kroeker, 16, home school, Medicine Hat, Alberta, CA
God, please give me friends who love me,
and help me to love them back.