Oh What A Friend

-One afternoon, when I was resting in bed, I was
listening to the song, "What A Friend We Have In Jesus". (I love old hymns)
I started thinking how having Jesus for a friend is very much like having a
really good human friend Only better.

My really close friends love me. At least, I think so. Still, their love
they have for me is, I know, nothing compared to the love that Jesus has for
me. My finite brain cannot grasp the depth or extent of that love. All I
know is, "Jesus loves me this I know, For the Bible tells me so".

Really good friends know me.  They know what I like and what I don't like.
They know how I think. Who, then, knows me better than a good human friend?
Nobody but my Heavenly Friend, Jesus. The one difference is that, if I want
to, I can hide things from my human friends but there is no point trying to
hide anything from Jesus as He knows it all anyway.

Good human friends are faithful. Not just when I am polished up and behaving
nicely but also when I am feeling frustrated and out-of-sorts. I used to
think that, by the time I am healed, I won't have any friends left .
But, my really good friends are probably going to stick around.
Unless, of course, out of my frustrations, I do or say something that sends
them away. But I know, thankfully, that I can never get Jesus to leave. In
fact, when I am pretty much having a meltdown, is often when I feel His
presence the most.

Human friends are such a comfort when you are hurting. Even if they don't
know what to say to make me feel better, just knowing that they are there
to share my sorrow is often enough to make me feel better. How much more
is it special it is to have Jesus comfort me. Whether it is a word, either
through the Bible or the Holy Spirit, or a strong sense of His presence when
I am upset.

I really do value the companionship of close human friends. Whether it is
just talking to me, whether it is reading to me or whether it is taking me
on outings, including to church. They certainly help to pass the time for
me. But there are times when it is impossible for humans to be around. But
Jesus is with me 24/7. Did He not say that He will never leave or forsake
us? When I feel like I need somebody to talk to but nobody is around, there
is always Jesus. And the neat thing is that I don't have to be able to speak
because He can read my mind!

Sometimes we all need advice about something. Human friends can often give
good advice as they frequently can see things from a totally different
perspective. Or, sometimes, the Holy Spirit will give advice through them.
The best advice-giver, though, is Jesus. If we ask for advice, He will give
it, either through the Bible or through the Holy Spirit or, maybe, through
another person.


Finally, a really good friend will rebuke you when you need it. I am no different from anybody else and, from time to time need to be rebuked. Proverbs does say that open rebuke is better than secret love. I truly appreciate the people who will risk making me upset in order to correct me. How much more is Jesus willing to rebuke His children, Christians, for our own good. I have had Jesus rebuke me-just like other Christians.

So, yes, I do very much value good human friends but, most of all, I am awed and overwhelmed to have Jeans as my best friend.