Knowing God On Friendships
Whom have I in heaven but You? And there is none upon earth that I desire besides You (Psa.73:25).
The success of social media is due to man’s longing for significance. He wants to be known and acknowledged for his successes in life. And so the more friends he has the more significant he feels. The more ‘likes’ he receives from his postings the better he feels about his sense of worth. Simply put, he measures his significance based on the amount of friends he makes.
Friendship is a needful thing. God said so before he made Adam. It is not good for man to be alone (Ge.2:18). But not all friends make good company. How often have we not seen good boys and girls get into trouble because of the influence of their friends? And it is not just bad friends that get us in trouble. Those we deem dependable and insightful can also give us advice that moves us away from God’s higher purpose for our lives.
In my many years of ministry I have dealt with many young people who had a definite call of God upon their lives and who wanted to pursue higher ministry. But then along comes an uncle or aunt or school counselor who sideswipes them off to another path seemingly for their interests or financial welfare. I was one of those individuals. From the very night that I was saved I knew God had called me into the ministry and I began to make plans towards that end. But then the pressure came from family and friends and next thing I knew is that for the next thirty years or so I was engaged in professional accounting but with a heart that never belonged to the corporate offices that imprisoned me. My father never acknowledged me as a minister but only as an accountant. It was only after he died that I was released to pursue the call that came that first night some four decades ago.
And so while friendship is needful on the same token we do not need a lot of friends. Moses had Aaron, David had Jonathan, Elijah had Elisha, Jesus had an inner circle, and Paul had Silas. God sent the animals into the ark in pairs. In the mouth of two witnesses every word will be established. God is in the midst where two or three are gathered together. One will chase a thousand and two, ten thousand. God and I make two. One good friend is all we need, and if we cannot find one on earth, we have one in heaven.