Friends

With all of the disadvantages and chaos of moving, there are some bright spots. When you move to a new place, you make new friends. You don’t have to, of course. But if you are aware of your surroundings, and are looking for opportunities to show the love of Christ, you will make connections.

Because I’ve moved around a little in my life, it means that I now have friends in Texas, Minnesota, Kentucky, and Pennsylvania. Because my friends have moved around a little, I now have friends in Missouri, South Carolina, Arkansas, and Virginia. And by “friends,” I don’t mean acquaintances, but true friends who share common interests, and with whom, to varying degrees, I stay connected.

If you’ve moved around yourself, even within the same community or county, you know what I mean. You can even make new friends at a new school, college, or job. It’s not that difficult if you put in the time and effort.

In fact, the Internet and all of its applications means you can stay in contact with folks much easier. Even without the more formal social platforms, you can, over time, create a society of friends who bless one another’s lives, pray for one another, and plan get-togethers.

What happens to old friends when you make new ones? In my experience, they are not replaced or forgotten, for each relationship is a one-of-a-kind reality which has its own life and its own set of experiences. I find myself reflecting often on my older relationships, and the best of them only get better with age, in spite of the distance.

You pick up the flavor of this in the New Testament writings of the Apostle Paul. In most of his letters, he shares greetings with people and ministry partners in every major city. In Philemon you can see how a long distance relationship need not lose its edge. And in the final chapter of Romans, notice how many connections he mentions and their various interconnections.

Friendships take time and attention, of course, and come in all shapes and sizes. But they are worth the effort and pay great dividends when we seek not only to make friends, but to be one.

“Do not forsake your friend and the friend of your father,
and do not go to your brother’s house when disaster strikes you–
better a neighbor nearby than a brother far away.”
Proverbs 27:10


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