Friendship

You may remember at the end of the book of Job, God takes Job’s three friends to task for their false accusations and for the way they failed to help Job during a time of tremendous duress. God then commands them to go make a sacrifice of repentance. At the same time, God also commands Job to pray for his friends. Things had been said between them that would strain any relationship. God knows it is going to take work to heal.

What strikes me about this passage is that it is clear God wants the friends to reconcile. God knows that friendships are a vital part of life.

Aristotle said that if you could have all the goods the world could give you—but had to have them without friendship—you’d choose not to have them. There would be no question.

Writing about this very thing, John O’Donohue claims, “There is a natural hunger in the spirit to be loved, and to be as you are without being judged. (But) we offer each other these spaces less and less. We’ve become post-graduates in the art of acquaintances but paupers in the art of friendship…”

He goes on to say, “If you realize how vital to your whole spirit and being and character and mind and health friendship actually is, you will take time for it. The tragedy for so many of us is that we have to be in trouble before we remember what is essential… It would be great to step back a little from one’s life and see around you: Who are those that hold me dear, that truly see me, and those that I need?”

Let us pray: God of grace, what a gift friends are to us… Thank you for people with whom we have found a sense of connection and companionship. Thank you for the deep love and grace that we feel through them. We lift our friends up to your care today. Loving God, we also pray today for people who are lonely and for others who are most often forgotten. Grant us your grace, your patience, your forgiveness, and your love, that we might be better friends to those we love and better able to reach out to those who may need us most. We ask in Jesus’ name. Amen.