Enjoyed a phone conversation with my dearest friend tonight. I swear, we could talk and laugh the rest of our lives and not run out of conversation or laughter. This quote is for dearest friend. “We’ll be best friends until we’re old and senile. Then we can be new friends.” A true friend is like no other. Friendship bonds us with trust and affection. Friends celebrate our successes and comfort us in difficult times. “Friendship is a wildly underrated medication,” Anna Deavere Smith. I love that quote!

“Real queens fix each other’s crowns, and they never tell the world it was crooked.” — Amy Morin

I love the friendships in the Toy Story movies. I think the song, “You’ve Got A Friend In Me,” from the movies defines friendship at its best. The lyrics, written by Randy Newman, read, “You’ve got a friend in me. When the road looks rough ahead and you’re miles and miles from your nice warm bed, you just remember what your old pal said. Boy, you’ve got a friend in me. Yeah, you’ve got a friend in me. You’ve got troubles, I’ve got ’em too. There isn’t anything I wouldn’t do for you. We stick together and we see it through cause you’ve got a friend in me. You’ve got a friend in me. Some other folks might be a little bit smarter than I am, bigger and stronger, too. Maybe. But none of them will ever love you the way I do. It’s me and you, boy. And as the years go by our friendship will never die. You’re gonna see it’s our destiny. You’ve got a friend in me. You’ve got a friend in me.” To all my friends, “You’ve got a friend in me.” I love y’all and I thank you for your friendship.

In John 15:12-13, Jesus commands us to love each other. “My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” True friendship is an emotional connection of respect and trust with a shared joy of spending time together. Scripture counsels us to “carry each other’s burdens, and in this way, you will fulfill the law of Christ,” Galatians 6:28. In a religious context God is our friend through our fellowship with him. If we continue reading in John, verse 15 uses the word “friend” to describe the relationship God wants with those who follow him.

“What a friend we have in Jesus. All our sins and griefs to bear! What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer!”

In a religious context God can be considered our friend. God desires a relationship with us and wants a spiritual connection with our lives. Scripture tells us God desires to be our friend. Jesus explicitly tells his followers, “I no longer call you servants… instead, I have called you friends,” John 15:15. As Christians our friendship with God is based on a loving relationship where we show our love by following God’s commandments. God cares for us and provides for both our physical and spiritual needs. God offers wisdom and direction as he guides us through the challenges of life. When we experience sorrow he comforts us with solace and peace. God’s love is unconditional and unwavering. We don’t have to be perfect to be loved. Just like we confide in our friends we can talk to God anytime about anything. He’s always listening. We can always count on God’s love.

“There is nothing on this earth more to be prized than true friendship.” —Thomas Aquinas