How often do we take time to thank God for the gift of a faithful friend? A faithful friend is a gift we should cherish. I was doing my prayers and meditation and the reading for the day was from Sirach 6:5-17 in the Catholic Bible. The focus of that reading was about friends vs. what I call “friendenemies” (those folks that appear to be friends, but aren’t). In fact, they are the worse kind of enemies, because they are close enough to you to suck the life right out of you. I can still hear the words of my mother ringing in my head, “Everybody is not your friend.” No truer words spoken, and how painful it is to live the reality of such betrayal.
Friendships are important and as parents we keep a watchful eye over the character traits of those people our children call their friends because we know the power of that bond to influence character and behavior. But do we teach them what a friend really is? There are more than enough friendenemies to go around, but a faithful friend is a gift. I always say that the Bible is like Prego spaghetti sauce and Sirach puts it this way:
“ A faithful friend is a sturdy shelter;
he who finds it finds a treasure.
A faithful friend is beyond price,
no sum can balance his worth.
A faithful friend is a life- saving remedy,
such as he who fears God finds;
for he who fears God behaves accordingly,
and his friend will be like himself.”
In essence, a faithful friend is dependable. They are with you through bad times as well as good. They are loyal; not just fair weather friends who are there when they feel like being there for you or there’s something in it for them. And they’re honest. They’re going to tell you what you need to hear instead of what you want to hear; and they will do it in love because they have your best interest at heart. That’s a faithful friend. Take the time to thank God for the gift of a faithful friend, and honor them by telling them how important they are in our lives.
Peace and Blessings,
Gail