A Father And Friend... Pretty Cool Isn't It?
What is a friend? Once a British publication asked that question and offered a prize for the best definition. Among the thousands of answers received were the following:
“One who multiplies joys, divides grief, and whose honesty is beyond violation.”
“One who understands our silence.”
“A volume of sympathy bound in cloth.”
“A watch that beats true for all time and never runs down.”
The winning definition read: “A friend is the one who comes in when the whole world has gone out.”
C. Raymond Beran, in Bits and Pieces wrote, “Friends are people with whom you dare to be yourself. Your soul can be naked with them. They ask you to put on nothing, only to be what you are. They do not want you to be better or worse. When you are with them, you feel as a prisoner feels who has been declared innocent. You do not have to be on your guard. You can say what you think, as long as it is genuinely you. Friends understand those contradictions in your nature that lead others to misjudge you. With them you breathe freely. You can avow your little vanities and envies and hates and vicious sparks, your meanness and absurdities, and in opening them up to friends, they are lost, dissolved on the white ocean of their loyalty. They understand. You do not have to be careful. You can abuse them, neglect them, and tolerate them. Best of all, you can keep still with them. It makes no matter. They like you. They are like fire that purges to the bone. They understand. You can weep with them, sing with them, laugh with them, and pray with them. Through it all.... and underneath it all they see, know, and love you. A friend? What is a friend? Just one, I repeat, with whom you dare to be yourself.”
A great story of friendship is found in the world of baseball. In his first seasons with the Brooklyn Dodgers, Jackie Robinson, the first black man to play Major League baseball, faced venom nearly everywhere he traveled.... fast balls at his head, getting spiked by runners the bases, brutal name calling from the opposing dugouts and from the crowds. During one game in Boston, the taunts and racial slurs seemed to reach a peak. In the midst of this, another Dodger, a Southern white named Pee Wee Reese, called time out. He walked from his position at shortstop toward Robinson at second base, put his arm around Robinson's shoulder, and stood there with him for what seemed like a long time. The gesture spoke more eloquently than the words: This man is my friend.
An often made comment describing Jesus during his ministry was that He was “a friend to tax collectors and sinners”. Often the comment is made as a negative accusation. It was said of Him in a critical way. However the fact is that He was a friend. Friendship and extending friendship was important to Him because in coming to show us what God was like He came to show us and Abba Father that wanted us to experience a friendship with him.
What is so exciting that is when you come to the realization that Abba Father wants a friendship it’s a “wow” experience. You begin to understand what it means to be loved as you are rather than because of how you think you are expected to perform. He is someone who knows all about me. He clearly sees all our strengths and weaknesses.... all our qualities and flaws, and likes us just the same. He likes us just the way we are and because of that there arises within us the desire to take on the challenge to live the potential He sees in us.
Psychotherapist Virginia Satir (1916-1988) once said, “I believe the greatest gift I can conceive of having from anyone is to be seen by them, heard by them, to be understood and touched by them.” Jesus has given that gift to us. He offers you and I His true friendship. There are many ways to accept the friendship He offers. Likely it can best be summed up and accepted when we are loyal to Him and in turn offer the same kind of friendship that He has shown us to others.