Your Best Friend

After David had finished talking with Saul, Jonathan became one in spirit with David, and he loved him as himself. From that day Saul kept David with him and did not let him return home to his family. And Jonathan made a covenant with David because he loved him as himself. Jonathan took off the robe he was wearing and gave it to David, along with his tunic, and even his sword, his bow and his belt. (1 Samuel 18:1-4)

There are two things that are true for everyone: we all need to have the right kinds of friends, and we all need to be the right kinds of friends to others. In this life, we will make acquaintances, but we won’t make many true friends. That is why choosing your friends and being a good friend is so important. True, lasting friendship is valuable because it’s so rare.

When you select your friends and when you strive to be a good friend, keep these things in mind:

Best friends give selfless love. True friendship involves sacrifice and selflessness. It means having an “after you” attitude instead of a “me first” attitude. Jesus modeled selflessness for us perfectly, so we would be wise to follow His example when it comes to the context of our friendships.

Best friends give steadfast loyalty. We all want friends we can count on. We want friends to be there for us when we’re down, to comfort us when we’re hurting, and to support us when we’re weak. The last thing we want is to have a bunch of friends who are always there when times are good but then somehow go missing when the trials of life sink in.

Best friends give spiritual leadership. Friendship is one of the greatest tools God gave us to help us grow in our faith. It’s so important that you find friends who will encourage you in your walk with the Lord, challenge you when you’re struggling with sin, and give you wisdom and discernment when you have a big decision to make.

If you can find these qualities in a friend, and if you can portray these qualities to others, you are going to set yourself up well to have wonderful, high-quality, God-honoring friendships.

Dear Lord, thank you for the blessings that true friends are. I ask that you would give me wisdom and discernment to choose friends that are selfless, loyal, and spiritually strong. And I also pray that you would help me to foster these same characteristics so I can be a good friend to others. Amen.