“One who has unreliable friends soon comes to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.”

I had a conversation with a good friend yesterday who is juggling a lot of inconvenient details in order to be here for an event I have this coming week. During the conversation, we both realized that while we each have a long list of friends, we have a much shorter list of people who would go to such lengths to show up. We had a good laugh about how I’ve made it as complicated as possible for him to be here—just to test his loyalty. Over the years, unreliable friends have revealed themselves and removed themselves from our list of dependable ones. While our list of acquaintances has stayed long, the list of close, dependable, trustworthy friends has grown smaller. The heart of this proverb in Hebrew suggests that those who chase after friendships—good and bad—come to ruin. Obviously, it’s the bad friends who bring that ruin. After working decades with teenagers, I’ve seen many young people desperate for what they believed were friendships, only to make poor decisions about what they would or wouldn’t compromise on just to have them. I believe that’s an important element of what Solomon is cautioning against in this verse. It is no less true as we age. Today, align your relationships with others who are sold out to Christ. #BeTheEdge

“Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” John 15:13 NIV