2:228 – Band of Brothers (and Sisters)

#faithbites #faithjourney band

Buddy, Pal, Friend, Aquantience, Best Friend. These are terms that we use to describe close friends. As my best friend use to say “Friends help you move. Real friends help you move bodies”. It’s a bit morbid but it’s true.

Do you have someone in your life, who you can bear your heart and soul too? Not just your parents or spouse but someone who will be there and tell you not what you want to hear but what you need to hear.

Today, my best friend of 24 years came to visit. We can talk about anything and everything and he doesn’t pull punches. I had another friend, in crises, call me and just needed a shoulder and an ear.

Dividing our burdens is what we are made to do. Live isn’t mean to be lived alone. To have friends like this takes work. You must build-up to it. You can’t just say hey So and So, here’s my life story and I need you to give me what I need to hear.

Do you have a small group of men or women to help speak truth into your life?

Scripture

• Elijah said to Elisha, “Stay here; the LORD has sent me to Bethel.” But Elisha said, “As surely as the LORD lives and as you live, I will not leave you.” So they went down to Bethel. – 2 Kings 2:2
• One who has unreliable friends soon comes to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. – Proverbs 18:24
• Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up.

Reflection

If you fall, is there someone to pick you up? Not just pick you up but brush you off, help you back up, and tell you why you fell down and how not to do it again. This is what we need. We are surrounded by work friends, church friends, and friends by circumstance. If you changed jobs, how many of your work friends would you still hang out with? If you changed churches, how many would you still be in contact with? It’s not that they are unreliable, but you haven’t crossed the bridge from casual friends to a true band of brothers.

In 2 Kings, we see Elijah, telling Elisha to stay as he is on a mission from God. But Elisha says no way, as surely as the Lord Lives and you live, I will not leave you. Knowing it would be a challenging journey Elisha stayed by Elija’s side.

I have been blessed by two people who will always be there and speak life into me. Someone who isn’t my spouse and someone who is a man like me and wouldn’t beat around the bush. Sometimes it’s hard to accept 1) that we need someone like this, and 2) that what they are saying is truth as we need it.

Charge

We all need an Elisha or a band of brothers to help us out. If you have this, cherish it. Nurture it and feed this relationship, as you never know when you will need them. If you don’t have it, pray to the Lord and ask for him to put people in your lives. He will answer. Then you need to nourish and build the relationship over time.

Prayer

Lord, thank you for those who serve as our closest advisors and friends. Help everyone to find that person or person to serve in that role. Let us serve in that role for others. Give us the time, patience, and dedication to seek out these relationships and build them up over time. You are generous with your Grace and wonder. Help us to be a friend as we want others to friend us. In your name, Amen.