Do you consider having friends important?

Personally for me, the older I get the more I realize how important friends are. The more I realize their importance, then the more I appreciate them.

Though sometimes they are very difficult to have, they are more worth it than they are a waste. Yes, you will get hurt; but the ones that are true will show themselves in the end. I have learned that sometimes it’s the least expected ones — the ones who hurt you but also the ones that are true. In the end, friendships are worth the chance.

Friends offer some of the best memories in life. They can help us deal with stress and make better lifestyle choice’s that will be for the better. My favorite part of friendships is the laughter that always accompanies them.

Friends are important for so many different reasons in life. More important than what we even realize. There is studies that prove that friendship is not only important for our social being but also for our mental health/emotional being.

A friend is someone who you can talk to, who won’t judge you, love you for you, and most of all, makes you feel like you are worth something.

How good of a friend are You?

Here lately I have been rethinking the way I approach a new friendship and also revisiting how I treat my friends currently. What can I do better? How can I be a better friend? I understand how important friends are to me and how much I appreciate them but what am I doing myself for others?

“And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise.” Luke 6:31

”Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them…” Matthew 7:12

How you want to be treated is how you should treat others. Be the friend to someone else that you need someone to be to you. I promise this mindset will boost the value of your friendships. It will weed out the ones who care and the ones who don’t. Yes, it hurts to lose a friend or to realize that one does not count you as valuable as you do them but, it lets you know which ones are worth more of your time. That’s where the quality of friendships shows. I have leaned that it’s the ones that I may not give that much attention to that are the ones that are of better quality. Those that are the least expected of friendships. Someone who you don’t hardly ever see but when you do you pick up like you just seen them yesterday, or those that you honestly just met or may not have the same outlook on beliefs but yet they offer a value that is priceless. Cherish those that cherish you. Embrace those that embrace you.

A good friend is someone who defends and protects, who is loyal, considerate, and kind, a person who is fun and brings out the best in their friends.

Be that friend.

Be the right kind of friend. Offer no judgment unless it is asked. Be genuine in your conversations and in your actions. Accept the person for who they are — agree to disagee if need be. Be trustworthy — don’t ruin it.

I challenge you. Look for ways to be a better friend.

Don’t ever under estimate the impact that you may have on someone else’s life.

Sometimes the greatest gift you can give another person is to simply unclude them. Christ did.

”Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down His life for His friends. Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knows that not what his Lord doe think: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of My Father I have made known unto you.” John 15:13, 15

”A man that hath friends must shew himself friendly: and there is a Friend that sticketh closer than a brother.” Proverbs 18:24

Christ is the ultimate example of a true friend. No, we will probably never have to go through the extremes that He did but it sure sets a major example. Give of yourself to others. Lose yourself in the service of others.

If you cannot do great things, do small things in a great way.

I have challenged myself to this just recently. Whether is be something simple like just simply asking how someone’s weekend was and show true interest in what they have to say or stopping by a friends job and dropping of cookies just to make them smile. Call someone the next day that had to miss a church service or a day at work because they was sick and let them know you care and you missed them. Make a comment on their social media about how cute the picture is or show interest in what they share.

You would think that little, simple things like this are just tedious and shouldn’t matter but that fact is, they do matter. Us as humans all at some point will thrive for acceptance. Unintentionally. We all want to feel value/worth. We want to know that someone cares and actually does see us as a real person.

You never know, you may reach out to someone with something and then they return with something that you need at just the right moment. Don’t be afraid to pay it forward.

Send that text. Mail out some snail mail. Make the drive. Be there for someone when they have no one.

Friends are angels who lift us to our feet when our wings have trouble remembering how to fly.

Christ is our true friend. He is the one that is always there no matter what. He listens when we cry. He understands even when we don’t. He gives us joy and laughter in tough times. He helps us see the silver lining in the storm clouds. He gives us strength each day to carry on. He is truely the greatest example of a friend. I am compelled to be more like Him.