THE LOST ART OF RELATIONSHIP
just like he did in John 11:33–36.
“When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. ‘Where have you laid him?’ he asked. ‘Come and see, Lord,’ they replied. Jesus wept. Then the Jews said, ‘See how he loved him!’”
Likewise, happiness should also be displayed when called for, just as Paul taught in 1 Corinthians 12:26, “If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it,” and Romans 12:5, “Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.” These verses tell us that if one of us is going through a difficult time, we suffer too right along with them. If one of us is celebrating a win, we celebrate with them. Doing so shows we are willing to take on the struggles, pain, and difficulties of our friends, as well as be happy when things go right for them.
In these ways, the connection we have with each other goes deeper. Display- ing emotion is part of true friendship.
3. A friend sticks with you, especially when the going gets tough.
“One who has unreliable friends soon comes to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.” (Prov. 18:24)
“Fake friends are like shadows. They follow you in the sun, but leave you in the dark.” ~ Unknown
We will all go through dark moments or even dark seasons. Those are the times when friends double down on the friendship—to be there for each other. Think of a time when you were going through an extremely dark moment in your life. Who was there with you? Who stuck with you even though it was difficult? When you are pressed down and surrounded on all sides, who still sits with you, cries with you, and helps you? These are friends.
My wife and I took a tour of a cavern in Murphys, California. At one point in the tour, all fifteen to twenty of us were on a platform with about three or four small lights illuminating the space. The tour guide gave us the disclaimer that if we were afraid of the dark, we might wish to climb back to an area that was lit. No one moved. She said to imagine only having a candle to light your way—and she proceeded to turn off all but one light that was the brightness of one candle. It was dark, but we could still see enough around us to let us know where we were and how to get out if we needed to.