Friends

Think about the friends that you spend the most time with. Now, how many of those people do not follow Jesus? Do you have any friends who are not Christ-followers? It is important to have close friends who share our faith. The Bible warns us against being “unequally yoked.” Christian friends can encourage us, challenge us, support us, and point us toward Jesus. But it is easy to get stuck in our own Christian bubbles, surrounding ourselves only with people who think and believe the same as us. We can forget that our mission is like Paul’s mission after meeting Christ: to “be a witness … to everyone of what you have seen and heard.” So, we need to pop our Christian bubbles. This doesn’t mean that we have to leave our Christian friends. This just means that we need to make an effort to reach out to people who do not know Jesus. Maybe this means spending time with a co-worker outside of work. Or joining a group at the local library or community center, or a book club. Or just talk to the parents of your kids’ friends. We can always find new people to befriend. When we do, we get to know another person’s world, their joys and pains, and we can show them how Jesus can speak into those joys and pain. Once we have developed a friendship, we can’t help but tell them the good news of God’s love for them in Jesus Christ. This is Luis Palau.