True Friends

The sign outside of my office door usually makes people smile. It reads, “I ain’t from the South, but I got here as quick as I could!”

Humor diverts attention from the fact that I’m from the North. North Jersey to be exact.

When I head back for a visit, as I did recently, I tell people I don’t miss the traffic. What I miss are the places and the faces. And I saw both during a recent 40th High School Reunion.

The summer of 1969 was the end of an era--several, to be truthful. Not only were the 60’s ending, but it was also the exciting culmination of man’s amazing effort to reach the moon.

For me, though, it was more personal. 1969 was the bittersweet end of my High School days. Bittersweet because in mid-senior year, my father took a position that moved our family to South Jersey. And I went from a small town school to a large regional high school. I felt lost.

Instead of graduating with my hometown friends, I ended the year with new acquaintances. Bummer. At their 20th reunion, classmates from the new school didn’t even remember me.

For years I wished I could go back and change that decision to move so I could have graduated with my friends in my hometown. But, as they say, “There’s no going back.”

However, as I learned at this reunion in my hometown, my old classmates are still my friends. True friends. Some seem almost like family!

What’s odd about that is, for the most part, I haven’t seen some of them for 40 years. Sure, there’s been the occasional reunion, but the last one was ten years ago.

“Well, hold on just a minute. How can you feel close to people you hardly ever see?”

The Bible says, “There is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.” True friends are like that.

You’ve probably heard the old saying, “Friends are family you choose for yourself.” And I guess that’s true. Plus, there’s something about living through adolescence together that forges bonds deeper than we know.

Most of us have aged a little. No surprise there. Some looked very much like they did in High School. Others have changed. But the saddest thing to see was the memory board listing names of classmates who have passed away. At every reunion the list grows longer.

Sadly, the reunion was over before we knew it and it was time to leave. It was hard to say “Good-bye” because I don’t know when or if I’ll see my friends again. Tomorrow has no guarantee. And that made me think about the only friend who guaranteed he wouldn’t leave us.

Jesus told his friends, “Never will I leave you.” And if you are a friend of Jesus, if your faith is in him as your Lord and Savior—there is nowhere you can go without him. In fact he is the only friend who can walk with you through the “valley of the shadow of death.”

When a friend or loved one passes away, we still have their memory with us. But Jesus gives us more than that. Jesus said he would not abandon his followers. He said, “I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

How can Jesus be with us? When he returned to Heaven, he sent the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost. The King James Bible calls him the “Comforter.” Other versions refer to him as the “Counselor” or “Helper.” And part of his ministry today is to bring us peace and joy.

Throughout life, friends come and go. True friends stick with us no matter what happens. But Jesus Christ is a true friend forever. He is the only one who says, “I will never leave you” and is able to keep his promise.

Listen to the Bible; it’s great for your soul!

Almost Friends

I’ll never forget the day I almost met Bob Hope in Columbus, Ohio.

As I walked from a restaurant to the parking lot with friends, I almost ran in to him--literally! He was coming up the sidewalk and walked right by me.

“Hey, wasn’t that Bob Hope?” asked my friend. I said, “No way!” My friend said, “Yes it was!” So I went back and took a second look and, sure enough, it was Bob Hope, star of stage and screen. He was much shorter than I expected and looked like an ordinary grandfather. But I never met him. He was headlining the Ohio State Fair that year and had all his “people” around him. It was the closest I ever got to a Hollywood star.

So, if I told you Bob Hope and I were good friends, would you believe me? Of course not! I got close to him but I never met him. We were almost friends. And, as they say, “Almost only counts in horse shoes and hand grenades.”

Some people I know are almost friends of Jesus, too. They are almost Christians.

Well hold on just a minute. How can you be almost a Christian? Good question!

Some people get close to Jesus but never meet him. They almost run into him at church, Vacation Bible School, camp, weddings and funerals. Often they even attend church regularly and sing in the choir. But they don’t know Jesus and he doesn’t know them.

Others are introduced to Jesus Christ but then they forget him and go on with their lives. Maybe a friend introduces them to Jesus and talks about how a relationship with him changed their life. But they don’t personally pursue a “God-connection.” Nothing changes.

If I had personally met Bob Hope and then forgot who he was, it wouldn’t make much difference in my life. But if you meet Jesus and forget who he is, it will matter for eternity.

Last month I asked a young man if he’d met Jesus. He told me, “Not personally.” Well, if you’ve never personally met Jesus, may I introduce you? He’s worth more than a second look.

The Bible’s most famous verse, John 3:16, says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

Jesus himself claimed he was God’s son and that his death would provide forgiveness for sin. The Bible says, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Faith in Christ solves your sin problem and gives you the gift of eternal life.

A Christian is a person who meets Jesus Christ in the Bible, puts his or her faith in him and finds Jesus to be all he claims to be. Once a person takes that step of faith, they discover that God changes them for the better, from the inside out! And Jesus becomes a true friend forever.

You read a lot in the newspaper about politics. People are very passionate about it. But politics can’t really change your life forever or satisfy your soul. Only Jesus can do that.

Here’s what I tell folks who ask how they can meet Jesus and become a Christian: “The Bible makes it as easy as A, B, C. A - ADMIT to God that you have sinned and turn from your sin to God. B - BELIEVE that Jesus Christ died on the cross for your sins and rose from the dead. C - CALL upon Jesus and ask him to be your Lord and Savior.”

The Bible says if you do that, you can “know that you have eternal life.” Being a Christian and going to Heaven isn’t just a “hope so.” It’s a “know so” because God said so!

Once you meet Jesus, make peace with God and settle your eternal destination, you can focus on making a difference in this world because the most important issues are finally settled.

Listen to the Bible; it’s great for your soul!