True Riches
As I sat on my deck this morning praying, my thoughts turned toward friendship – brotherhood, my band of brothers, specifically. You see it’ll soon be turkey season here in MO and that means my closest friends come up from AR to hunt with me. (More specifically, I with them, they taught me how to hunt.)
When I was in high school, I felt all alone in my faith. And I felt lonely. I had friends to the level that I could experience friendship at that time in my life. But my heart yearned for more. I prayed that Father would give me a friend. So a few years later I went to college in another state and I was overwhelmingly blessed. If true friendship is a measure of a man’s wealth then I am truly a very, very rich man. Most college friendships end shortly after college when people move on with their lives. I have such “friends” but these are not so.
We call ourselves the Dogs – way before that was a popular term in the youth culture. I guess we were a head of our time. None of us had brothers (except for the one we affectionately call the Lost Dog who no longer walks with us) and we became brothers for each other. Nothing planned in our minds but looking back I can see the plan of God. We are five brothers seeking the same thing. Now, this is where it gets hard to articulate. What we have together is not glib or emotional mishmash. It is a growing substance, a living entity. I have a hard time defining friendship but I know what it is when I see it. It is faithfulness, commitment, acceptance, accountability, loyalty, brotherhood, and covenant. It is “I’ve got your back!” It is intimacy. It is peace. It is rest. I define these words in their purist form. We have laughed and cried, prayed and supported, argued and fought together. We have hurt and forgiven each other. We have wrestled and played together. We have worked and sweat together. We have held each other up when one couldn’t stand. We have grown together. We have stayed together some 20+ years. And I know where we’ll be in another 20+ years. It’s more than just familiarity with one another; it is a spiritual connection.
I had two friends recently, say, in the last six years. I gave them my heart. I loved them. One, I felt worthy to receive my heart. The other I knew couldn’t handle it but I gave him my heart anyway. I knew that Father had brought us along side each other for this purpose. Of the two, most would say the unworthy one was worthy (he said all the right things) and the other was shallow and couldn’t handle a true relationship. Well, as the story goes they both left and didn’t cherish the gift I had given them. The one, I knew this would eventually happen. The other was unexpected. The other left because my loyalty to the unworthy one. And he forfeited the riches.
So, why did I stay loyal to such an unworthy one? Because that is friendship. Now I weep for my lost friends. And often I stand at the gate for some sight of them. For I love them and long for their presence. And after all, the story isn’t over yet. But if they never return, I will still pray for them as the Spirit leads. I will still watch for them – for I am their friend. And that’s what friends do.
These Dogs – they do this and have done this for me as I for them. I am a rich man.
When I was in high school, I felt all alone in my faith. And I felt lonely. I had friends to the level that I could experience friendship at that time in my life. But my heart yearned for more. I prayed that Father would give me a friend. So a few years later I went to college in another state and I was overwhelmingly blessed. If true friendship is a measure of a man’s wealth then I am truly a very, very rich man. Most college friendships end shortly after college when people move on with their lives. I have such “friends” but these are not so.
We call ourselves the Dogs – way before that was a popular term in the youth culture. I guess we were a head of our time. None of us had brothers (except for the one we affectionately call the Lost Dog who no longer walks with us) and we became brothers for each other. Nothing planned in our minds but looking back I can see the plan of God. We are five brothers seeking the same thing. Now, this is where it gets hard to articulate. What we have together is not glib or emotional mishmash. It is a growing substance, a living entity. I have a hard time defining friendship but I know what it is when I see it. It is faithfulness, commitment, acceptance, accountability, loyalty, brotherhood, and covenant. It is “I’ve got your back!” It is intimacy. It is peace. It is rest. I define these words in their purist form. We have laughed and cried, prayed and supported, argued and fought together. We have hurt and forgiven each other. We have wrestled and played together. We have worked and sweat together. We have held each other up when one couldn’t stand. We have grown together. We have stayed together some 20+ years. And I know where we’ll be in another 20+ years. It’s more than just familiarity with one another; it is a spiritual connection.
I had two friends recently, say, in the last six years. I gave them my heart. I loved them. One, I felt worthy to receive my heart. The other I knew couldn’t handle it but I gave him my heart anyway. I knew that Father had brought us along side each other for this purpose. Of the two, most would say the unworthy one was worthy (he said all the right things) and the other was shallow and couldn’t handle a true relationship. Well, as the story goes they both left and didn’t cherish the gift I had given them. The one, I knew this would eventually happen. The other was unexpected. The other left because my loyalty to the unworthy one. And he forfeited the riches.
So, why did I stay loyal to such an unworthy one? Because that is friendship. Now I weep for my lost friends. And often I stand at the gate for some sight of them. For I love them and long for their presence. And after all, the story isn’t over yet. But if they never return, I will still pray for them as the Spirit leads. I will still watch for them – for I am their friend. And that’s what friends do.
These Dogs – they do this and have done this for me as I for them. I am a rich man.
posted by brent at 12:23 PM
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