Summer – time for friends
Summertime! In summer we meet more and more with friends, whether at the pool, for a coffee, a beer, or on warm, long evenings around a crackling fire. Maybe we will also meet new, interesting people?
We come together and enjoy the company. What could be better than having a meal together with good, old friends (or even new ones…), chatting, but most of all having deep conversations? This topic is on my mind a lot these days. I’m reading books about people’s need for closeness and relationship. This need is a longing that shapes us as human beings. (More about this after a summer break in the next post on September 1).
Friendships – this reminds me of my youth. We had a party room at home, where we often celebrated, sat together with our friends and talked about God and the world, but mostly about the world. I had a huge poster hanging there with the lyrics of “You’ve got a friend” by singer and songwriter Carol King. At times I heard this song several times a day and sang it along loudly – I can still sing it by heart today! This longing for good friends sits deeply in our soul!
“You’ve Got A Friend“ by Carol King
When you’re down and troubled,
And you need some love and care,
And nothing, nothing is going right
Close your eyes and think of me,
And soon I will be there
To brighten up even your darkest night.
You just call out my name
And you know wherever I am
I’ll come running to see you again
Winter, spring, summer or fall
All you have to do is call
And I’ll be there
You’ve got a friend
If the sky above you grows dark and full of clouds
And that old north wind begins to blow
Keep your head together and call my name out loud
Soon you’ll hear me knocking at your door
Now, ain’t it good to know that you’ve got a friend
When people can be so cold?
They’ll hurt you, yes, and desert you
And take your soul if you let them,
Oh, but don’t you let them
You’ve got a friend
Ain’t it good to know, you’ve got a friend?
Oh yeah, now
Oh, you’ve got a friend
Yeah, baby
You’ve got a friend
Don’t we all wish for friends like that? I want friends who are kind, who extend their spines only for me and never against me. Friends who are open and faithful to me; who are there with all their heart when I need them!
” Isn’t it good to know that you have a friend” says the song. This is about a human friend. We want and we need such friends! But the most important and faithful friend we can ever have is Jesus. He is our divine friend. When we seek him, we can be sure that we will find him! No human friend can ever be so kind, loving, faithful and wise a friend as he. And in my heart I feel that in the Holy Spirit, (which comes from the Greek “Ruach” and is feminine) we have the best “girl”friend we can ever have!
I want to pray for you.
“Lord, you are a God of relationship. You live in unity with Jesus and the Holy Spirit. You are one. And you are a God who created us humans to have a deep connection with you. You also created us to have friendships with each other.
And so I ask that you show us how we can be good friends. Help us to be curious, supportive, open and encouraging to our friends. Help us also to have patience for them when things don’t go smoothly. Help us to be vulnerable and authentic, even when that takes courage. And, Lord, above all else, help us to humbly embrace friendship with you and put it before everything else, for you are our true friend forever!
And so I bless the reader with lots of love, courage and patience for their friendships this summer. And I bless their relationship with you, Lord, with awe, gratitude and wonder! Amen”.
