7.
The Art of Friendship
“A real friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out.” ~ Walter Winchell
I remember a particularly tough time in my own relational journey. Fortu- nately, I had a couple of friends that became emotional supports for me. Just knowing they knew what was going on was amazing. The fact that they walked with me through those dark emotional moments and didn’t leave me to struggle on my own was incredible. They knew just what I needed.
As a student of relationship, it got me thinking about questions such as, what makes a friend? When do we begin to call someone a friend? How do we know we are still friends? Why do we need friends?
These are all excellent questions, some of which were answered in the previous chapter. One of the best ways for us to have friends is for us to under- stand, learn, and practice being a good friend. In this chapter, I explain five aspects of a friend that I think will help us with this. When reading through it, though, try not to think about how someone else needs to hear this.
These five aspects of a friend were taught and modeled to me by one of the greatest friends someone can have. They describe who a friend should be, what a friend should do, and how a friend should act. I mentioned before that I think we rush into calling people “friend,” without truly understanding the implica- tions of what it means to be someone’s true friend. I hope this chapter will clarify this and help you as you continue to develop friendships throughout your life.
1. A friend connects and shares life with you.
“Because we loved you so much, we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God, but our lives as well.” ( Thess. 2:8)