Corona Devo 1996

A few weeks ago my husband and I were out of town on a Sunday morning, but our boys went to church anyway and invited their friends to come too.  Eight young adults without parents filled a pew to worship the Lord, to learn the Bible, and to be together at 9:30 AM on a Sunday morning.  

Young people who obey the law are wise; those with wild friends bring shame to their parents.  ~Proverbs 28:7 

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Earlier this Summer, our kids were excited to attend church camp as they do every summer.  They recruited friends to come with them, as they do every year and some friends accepted the invitation even though the whole concept of going away to church camp for a week was brand new and even foreign to them and their families.  

I had multiple conversations with an interested-but-investigating mom, and in the end she decided that the camp was worth a try for her son, mostly because all of her son's friends (whom she trusted) were going.  

Her son accepted Jesus into his heart at that camp that his friends brought him to.  Sometimes friends are the vehicle that God uses to bring others to faith in Him.

Some men came carrying a paralyzed man on a mat and tried to take him into the house to lay him before Jesus. (19) When they could not find a way to do this because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him on his mat through the tiles into the middle of the crowd, right in front of Jesus.  

(20) When Jesus saw their faith, he said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.”  ~Luke 5:18-20

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For the same (amazing) church camp this Summer, one of the boys in our son's friend group had to pay his own way, but couldn't, and so one friend's family anonymously and generously paid a majority of someone else's child's tuition, and then our sons and their friends joined funds to fill in the rest.  Their friendship bonds are that thick--that they would dig into their own pockets to be together at church camp.

One who has unreliable friends soon comes to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.  Proverbs 18:24

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Last week another of our children's friends got baptized, and although their friend-group attends many churches in our area, that Sunday a number of them went to church twice...so as to be in spiritual support (and celebration!) of their friend's faith-milestone.

And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.  ~Hebrews 10:24

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Friendships are sometimes taken for granted, and good friends are hard to find.  But when we do...and when the bond of brother- or sisterhood in Christ is a part of that friendship--well, it is worth more than gold and these types of friends: they sharpen us.  

As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.  ~Proverbs 27:17

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The beautiful thing about friendship is that Christ models it for us.  All of the ways that Jesus supports us, encourages us, and challenges us...is all done out of His great love for us.  

The deepest and truest friends and friendships that we will keep will be formed and founded on the same principles that Christ demonstrates to us.

Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, (2) then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. 

(3) Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, (4) not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.  ~Philippians 2:1-4

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Let's be a friend of Christ today.  Let's also be a friend in Christ today.

Blessings, 

Sarah 

https://sarahsundy04.blogspot.com