Jun 21

Written by:
6/21/2010 9:53 AM 

My kids are awesome at ruining songs for me.  They change words so that when I sing them, my mind tends to drift toward the “adjusted” lyrics.  It seems that their overall goal in church is to see if they can get me to laugh on stage.  It’s worked a few times, I’ll admit.  One song that they’ve pretty much totaled for me is “Friend of God.” 

 

The real lyrics:

            “I am a friend of God, He calls me “friend.” 

My kids’ version:

            “I am a friend of God, He calls me “Fred”. 

 

I’m sorry if that has now ruined the song for you.  At least now if you ever see me smirk when we sing that song, you’ll know why. 

 

What makes a good friend?  To me, a friend is someone who you enjoy spending time with.  Friends share common interests.  They laugh together, and are willing to put down the invisible wall that we use to guard our own vulnerabilities and be real together.  A friend will tell you the truth, but will be gentle and kind if it’s a painful truth.  A friend will let you be yourself, let you make mistakes, and will still love you.  A friend will call you—even when they are tired themselves—just because they know you need to hear that you are important to them.  A friend will understand when you can’t talk.  A friend will be silly, serious, loving, daring, challenging, open, and forgiving.  All of my friends hold one other characteristic—all of them, without exception.  Every friend that I have is IMPERFECT.  Yeah…you heard me.  You’re all flawed. I know that sounds harsh.  Please stick with me though.  Trust me—it’s gonna get better.  J

 

I was having a talk with God this morning on my way to work.  I was being pretty honest and told Him that I really didn’t feel like talking to Him.  That was pretty much the end of the conversation.  “God, I know You’re there, but I just don’t feel like talking to You.” I suppose that’s a pretty bad way to treat a friend—especially when it’s the Creator of the Universe!  I know that when my friends stop talking to me, it hurts.  I also know that I’ve done this to my friends.  Apparently I don’t seem to have a problem doing that to God, either.  So, when I say that to God, is He hurt?  My guess is—not so much.  (Shocked?  Wouldn’t a loving God be hurt when we reject Him?)  Yeah, but remember: God is PERFECT.  He knows exactly what we are experiencing at every given moment.  Our friends here do not have that benefit.  God knows why we are feeling bad.  My friends only know what I tell them.  And, if I don’t TELL them, how will they know?  Ahhhh…is it getting clearer?  Let me say it another way:  God knows us inside and out.  Our friends only know what we tell them.  My friendships here are only as good as I am.  My friendship with God is as good as HE is. 

 

So here’s my point.  I have a friend that I didn’t call this weekend.  I apologize.  Ours is not a perfect friendship.  (We’re still cool, though, right?)  I hope so.  I find tremendous comfort in the fact that I bluntly told God that I didn’t want to talk to Him and I know He understands.  It’s a perfect friendship.  I don’t need to blog about it for Him to know why I acted that way.  He is the perfect friend. 

 

And I’m hoping that my other friend understands, too.