Friendship is Needed to Find and Expand Purpose
Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly
Beyonce, Kelly, and Michelle
Tina Fey and Amy Poehler
Will Smith and Jazzy Jeff
Oprah Winfrey and Gayle King
These B.F.F duos and trio are so notable you hardly think of one person without thinking of the other.
Not only do these people enjoy a strong private relationship together, but they also make pure magic creatively.
These friendships have withstood the test of time and millions of people are drawn to and pay hard earned cash to view the movies, talk shows, and listen to the music these genius pairings have created.
Talladega Nights and Stepbrothers will probably always be two of the funniest movies I have ever seen (“Let’s move the beds so we can do activities.” *insider).
Destiny’s Child will forever be the best girl group ever! I’m still patiently awaiting a reunion album and tour.
SNL was trash after Tina Fey and Amy Poehler left. And EVERY summer I’m bumping Summertime by Will Smith and DJ Jazzy Jeff.
So what is the secret sauce behind these talented, lucrative, creative, and lasting friendships? Surprisingly, the answer dates back to biblical times and it is also a little depressing.
Friendship, a Biblical Concept
Proverbs 17:17 states, “A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.”
Understand that the book of Proverbs was written by Solomon, the famous king who asked God for wisdom. So the wisdom of Proverbs comes directly from the mind of God.
It’s a bit sad to think that a friend would be the one who loves, while a sibling was literally created for adversity. Google’s dictionary defines adversity as “difficulties and misfortune”.
I was a little heartbroken when I realized that there is a lot of truth to this scripture. My sister and I are very close. She’s the only person in the world I tell almost everything to, but since birth we can not spend an entire day together without arguments arising. From the trivial “That’s my doll!” fights as children, to the very deep, “I don’t feel you really value me,” arguments as adults.
I decided to delve deep into scripture to find some practical examples of sibling relationships and the results were even more depressing.
Biblical Sibling Rivalries
- After Joseph revealed his dream to his brothers and father that they all bowed before him, his brothers in a jealous rage threw Joseph into a ditch on the side of the road.
- Jacob tricked his brother Esau out of their father’s blessing.
- David’s brothers and father thought very little of him. They only saw David as a shepherd and never imagined he had the potential to become a mighty king. (1 Samuel 17:28
- Leah tricked Jacob into marrying her instead of her sister Rachel.
- Cain killed Abel and became the first murder. Cain’s motive was jealously because God was more pleased with Abel’s sacrifice.
Well, wasn’t that uplifting? Now let’s take a look at friendship in the scriptures.
The Compassion of Biblical Friendship
- Jonathan was the best friend of David. Saul was Jonathan’s father and had hopes to kill David because of his jealously. Jonathan was set to become king after Saul, but as a loyal friend he saw that David was more worthy. Jonathan let David know that his dad was trying to kill him as a sign of a covenant to their friendship. 1Samuel 20
- After Jonathan was killed in battle, David took in Jonathan’s handicap son (being handicap was a huge disgrace to a man or boy at that time) and allowed him to eat from the king’s table for the rest of his days.
- A nameless Old Testament couple made a room for their friend Elisha in their home so that he would have a place to sleep, eat, and pray when he came to town.
- Jesus’s disciples laid down their lives to follow Jesus.
- Jesus gave his life for his friends.
- In friendship to Mary, Maratha, and Lazarus, Jesus preformed the miracle that would have him sent to the cross. Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead.
- Ruth renounced her religion and her god to follow an improvised Naomi.
- Ruth picked grain all day in Boaz’s field to feed the elderly Naomi.
- Naomi gave Ruth instruction on how to hook-up with Boaz.
- After Daniel interpreted a dream for King Nebuchadnezzar, the king rewarded Daniel by giving him a high position. Daniel took the position, but also requested for his friends Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to be in charge of all the affairs of the providence of Babylon- the king agreed! Daniel 2: 46-49
- A man who could not walk wanted to be healed by Jesus. There were too many people in the way to get to Jesus, so the man’s friends lowered him into the building from the roof!
- Lazarus sister Mary was so thankful to Jesus for his friendship that she washed his feet with her hair.
- In friendship to the disciples, Jesus washed their feet.
- Because Jesus had been a friend of Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus they, risked there wealth and positions as members of the Sanhedrin Council (the church’s governing body that sent Jesus to the cross) to take his body off the cross and prepare it for burial. Joseph of Arimathea even gave his own tomb up so that Jesus could have a proper burial.
- Mary Magdalene waited until after the Sabbath day when it was lawful to do work, but was the first person very early in the morning to be at the tomb to complete Jesus’s burial ritual. Side note: I believe because of her faithfulness she was the first person to see Christ alive after his resurrection.
Loving Friendships Help your Purpose
The examples of loving friendship in the Bible are much more plentiful than sibling rivalry which shows the importance of friendship to God.
The sacrifices these biblical friends made in the scripture are touching and serve a purpose.
Understand that many of these examples of friendship illustrate how camaraderie either helps call a person to their purpose or help expand a person’s vision.
A few examples are:
- Daniel’s friendship gave the three Hebrew boys the job they were called to have.
- The disciples helped Jesus expand his earthly ministry, while Jesus called the disciples to their purpose.
- The couple who gave Elisha a room gave him a private place to pray and expand his purpose of prophecy. Joseph allowing Jesus to borrow his own tomb helped Jesus establish Himself as the risen savior by fulfilling ancient biblical prophecy.
- Naomi’s advice for Ruth’s love-life transformed Ruth from a shamed, poor widow into a well respected and rich woman with a son.
- Ruth and Boaz’s son comforted Naomi who was left childless after the death of her sons. Through Ruth and Boaz’s union Naomi became a (grand) mother again.
- The paring of Ruth and Boaz established Ruth’s place in the lineage of Jesus.
Friendships That Help you Deliver
It seems as though a person can not truly come into their full life’s purpose until they met the friendship that will be all together life changing.
Gayle King really wasn’t a household name until her friendship with Oprah catapulted her journalism career into outer space.
I was watching a Youtube sermon by the late-great pastor Miles Monroe and he made this prophetic statement,“You must find friends who believe in your vision.”
When Mary learned she was pregnant with Jesus she visited her older cousin Elizabeth. Elizabeth was six months pregnant with John the Baptist who prepared the way for Jesus. When Elizabeth saw Mary her baby leaped in her womb.
Monroe said that we all are pregnant with a dream and we must find the person who makes our baby/our dreams leap.
Monroe went on to say, find people who are not abortionist ready to kill your dream at any moment, but seek friendships that will help nurture and deliver your dreams into fruition.
What’s Next?
\Now that you understand the importance of Godly friendship to God and your purpose, what’s your plan to attract better company?
Understand that pigeons and eagles don’t fly together, so maybe it’s time to redirect your values in friendship. Find people with vision and aspirations to build a relationship with.
If nothing else, begin to walk in the purpose you were created for and the company you need will find you.
Look below to listen to Myles Monroe’s sermon about friends with vision.
