An old blog...True meaning of friendship

Here is an old blog that I wrote before I had my big transformation. It was the start of God working in me to change and mold me and create me anew. I wasn't there yet, but God was working on it. He had already begun healing in my life and was leading me down the right path.

Written originally as a MySpace blog on May 25, 2007

The true meaning of friendship:

John 15:13 "No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends."

It's so funny that this came up in tonight's joint household meeting for SFC. I was just thinking of this passage yesterday when I was answering one of my friend's many My Space surveys. The question on the survey was "Would you take a bullet for a friend?" I tried hard to quote this verse, but it didn't seem to come out right although I did get the gist of it.

At tonight's SFC meeting this verse took on a whole new meaning and I was the one who defined it. The strange part of the whole thing is that I didn't even realize what I was saying until after I got done saying it. It wasn't me speaking. I was just the vehicle. It was really God using me to speak His Truth. His Word.

This is the gist of it all...

This verse is much more than "taking a bullet for friend" or "laying down in front of a car for a friend." Laying down one's life means laying out your life for a friend. It means sharing your life's experiences with a friend thus making you open and vulnerable to "taking a bullet for a friend." When you are completely open and honest with a friend, you are exposing yourself and leaving yourself open to getting hit by a bullet, i.e., Satan. He's the worst bullet there is. He knows us so well. He knows when the right time is to sneak and take control. We have to guard ourselves against that. When we are open, we allow our friends to be open, too. In that openness and honesty, we can protect one another from "the bullet." God is there to protect us. We are sharing the deepest feelings about our lives with one another. We are sharing the many ways that God has worked in our lives. We are spreading the Word and Works of God.

The amazing thing about all this is I didn't even realize what I had said until AFTER I had said it. It was when people were clapping (which is customary when people get done speaking at SFC) acknowledging what I had said. I felt as if I was getting some positive feedback. As if God was really speaking through me. The truth is He was. He always does when I am at SFC gatherings. He works in mighty and mysterious ways. He uses me as a true vehicle whether I am just praying or discussing Bible verses. I feel ALIVE at SFC gatherings. I don't feel any anger, hatred, or bitterness toward God that I would normally feel outside of SFC. The meetings are so alive and empowering. I feel spiritually recharged. It is amazing.

I am so lucky to have made this group of friends. A couple of the girls in the group have become like big sisters to me. They have become a part of my lifeline and support. I know I can go to them when I need an ear to listen or advice. Everyone in the group is so loving, non-judgemental and encouraging. They help to pick me up when I am feeling down. They remind me about the love of God. They exude God's love and I feel so loved and accepted. They are my first group of friends that I have made here in Orlando and I am truly blessed.

I look forward to our next joint household meeting so that I can get my bi-weekly spiritual fix.

Thank you SFC for all you have done for me. Thank you for being great friends. I am truly blessed. Thank you God for all you have done for me in the last couple of months in regards to SFC. Everyday I grow closer and closer to God. I regain a little bit of my spirit.