The Joy of Friendship
Now I appeal to Euodia and Syntyche. Please, because you belong to the Lord, settle your disagreement. And I ask you, my true partner, to help these two women, for they worked hard with me in telling others the Good News. They worked along with Clement and the rest of my co-workers, whose names are written in the Book of Life. Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again—rejoice! Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming soon. Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.
-Philippians 4:2-7 (NLT)
-Philippians 4:2-7 (NLT)
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May 18, 2020 – Okay, so today I felt God open my eyes to see something new from these verses in Philippians 4. Taken as a whole, we see that joy and peace come from doing the work of reconciling any conflicts we have with our friends. Paul even implores others to help out in this process if at all possible. I don’t think, “rejoice always” necessarily begins a new idea, but rather adds deeper meaning to why resolving conflict is so important. Paul encourages them (and us) to remember the joy that our friendships bring us. Remember the joy of having people in your life that care so much. Remember and let that joy motivate you. Let it outweigh any hurt you’ve felt and set your sights on experiencing the joy of a close friendship restored. That joy will replace your worries and enable you to experience God’s amazing peace found through prayer and fellowship with our brothers and sisters in Christ.
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We are wired for relationships. We need them. We are not meant to try to go through life alone. At the same time, I acknowledge that friendship can be a source of the greatest joy and the deepest pain. C. S. Lewis wrote, “To love at all is to be vulnerable.” That’s true, and it’s also why we must fight for our friendships and not withdraw from them. They will have ups and downs. Learn how to resolve conflict, and like Euodia and Syntyche, get help from others when you need it.
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Lewis, C. S. The Four Loves. Geoffrey Bles, 1960.
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