Bible Verse Friday #27

"There are "friends" who destroy each other, but a real friend sticks closer than a brother." ~Proverbs 18:24

"As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend." ~Proverbs 27:17

This is the third week we've talked I've touched on the topic of love.
The first week I talked about loving God and his never-ending love for us.
Last week I touched on loving others, strangers in-particularly.
This week let's talk about loving our friends.

Friends are the family you choose.
You'll often hear friends refer to each other as brothers & sisters.
Or your children may call them Aunt/Uncle.
The friends we choose need to be friends who can help us to grow.
These are the people in your life who can tell you when you are venturing down a wrong path and when you are wrong.
These are also the people you turn to when you experience life's biggest ups and downs.
It only makes sense that we would want friends who share a common set of beliefs and morals with us.
I will be the first to tell you that sometimes friends are only for a season, while others seem to be for a lifetime.
Friends teach us different things about ourselves and the world.
My blog & military friends are some of the most interesting people I've ever connected with.
Because they are from all over I learn new and exciting things each and every day.
I notice that I share a common faith with most of my friends and it's because of this that I am pushed to be a better Christian and a better friend to those I interact with on a daily basis.

Do you have friends who sharpen you?
Do you have friends who are closer than your own siblings?

 "Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art... It has no survival value; rather it is one of those things that give value to survival." ~C.S. Lewis

Each season of your life you will need friends to share your experiences with.
At some points that may mean making new friends.
In other times it may mean reconnecting with old friends.
Regardless, of the age of the friendship loving your friends is an expectation.
To call someone friend and not love them seems odd.
This type of love is deeper than the love we are expect to give to strangers and yet it is not quite as deep as the love we have for our God.
As I stated earlier, friends are the family we choose.
If we are to love our family than we are to love our friends.

How do you show love to your friends?
Do you feel comfortable telling your friend when you think they have done something wrong?
How do your friends sharpen you?
And better yet...how can you sharpen your friends?

I hope you have a Blessed Friday!