The sweet gift of friendship

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This past weekend I got the chance to fly out to Waco, Texas and visit my sweet friend Hailey Russell at college. I got a little taste of the Baylor lifestyle & enjoyed every second!

God shows us little glimpses of heaven on earth, and I truly believe friendships are one of the things that shows us those glimpses of God in everyday life. Whether it be laughing or crying together, in those moments God uses friendships to lift us up.

I was reminded of a story in the Bible where God uses a friendship between two brothers, Aaron and Moses to lift one another up and glorify Him and thought I would share:

Exodus 6:29-30; 7:1-3-

"God addressed Moses, saying,

'I am God. Tell Pharaoh king of Egypt everything I say to you.'

And Moses answered, 'Look at me. I stutter. Why would Pharaoh listen to me?'

God told Moses, 'Look at me. I’ll make you as a god to Pharaoh and your brother Aaron will be your prophet. You are to speak everything I command you, and your brother Aaron will tell it to Pharaoh. Then he will release the Israelites from his land."

God desires friendship in our lives. In the story of Moses and Aaron, God blessed them with a friendship built upon God. Their sole purpose was to serve God by obeying His command to speak to Pharaoh, the mighty(and stubborn) king of Egypt.

When God commanded Moses to speak to Pharaoh, Moses was afraid. As much as Moses spoke in front of crowds and as much as public speaking came easy to him, he was afraid to speak to Pharaoh.

Moses had previously spoken to Pharaoh, and it ended up not working out in his favor. He was scared for that to happen again.

God does not call us to be afraid, but in this example I believe God is directing our focus towards something deeper than the fear Moses is experiencing.

I think God is showing us that in those places where we may feel weak, God gives us friendships to lift us up.

Ecclesiastes 4:9-10-"Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up."

And this is exactly what God does with Aaron and Moses. When Moses felt afraid to speak to Pharaoh, God gave him Aaron to speak for him.

Sometimes, God calls us into others lives to minimize one anothers weaknesses and magnify one anothers strengths.

I love the beauty that this truth holds. We are all imperfect beings with different strengths and weaknesses. Some people are more talented in playing the guitar while others are more talented in playing the flute. But when the flute and guitar player come together, they create a beautiful song. God uses our differences in order to magnify our strengths.

Wherever you are today, whether you have many close friends or are struggling to find one, know that God blesses us with those friendships in His timing. God blessed Moses with Aaron when Moses needed him most. God blessed me with my sweet friend Hailey Russell when I needed one most, and He will with you.

But here me out, friends aren't the sole thing that are going to lift us up. I don't want to get that confused. God is the only one that will fully satisfy us. We must go to Him first.

BUT I believe that God uses friends to do His work in us. He brings friends into our lives to give us glimpses of His love.

If you get one thing out of this post today I want you to hear this...

Be the friend that magnifies the strengths of another NOT minimizes them.

Dear God,

I pray that we all will learn from this story in the Bible about Aaron and Moses.

I pray that you will work within our lives to magnify the strengths of our friends.

I pray that anyone who desires a friendship that magnifies you that they will receive one.

I pray you will give those patience in the waiting, and I pray that, in the meantime, they will pursue you fully.

Thank you God for the gift of friendship.

Thank you for the small glimpses into your Kingdom that you give to us each day.

Help us to live our lives reflecting your love to others.

Thank you God that you are our eternal friend that will never stop magnifying our strengths.

Help us to see you clearer each and every day.

In your name, we pray, Amen.