Grow Your Garden of Friends

Warriors Arise: November 28, 2023

Matthew 5: 46 For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?

How does loving those who love you relate to tax collectors? They loves those who love them, who would that be? The only people who like tax collectors are the ones who are on the receive end of receives taxes. Jesus doesn't stop there, He goes on.

Matthew 5:46 And if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the tax collectors do so?

Maybe, it is in reference to tax collectors only befriending other tax collectors. Nobody likes tax collectors so they have to stick together or they wouldn't have any friends. So, if you love only the people who are just like you then you and I are like tax collectors.

We could be in a rut. We have our circle of friends but we dont' know how to grow our garden. We do not know how to add to our garden of friends. We may like the size of our garden, but God wants us to grow our garden; plant, tend and nurture more friends.

If we aren't making new friends then we are isolating ourselves. Our world continues to get smaller instead of growing. There are so many opportunities for expanding friendships.

Today, Scott, his mother, Beulah, Jim Callaway, Abigail, Lydia, Selah and myself served at the processing center for Samaritan's Purse Operation Christmas Child shoebox mission in Aurora, Il. It was wonderful. I found out last week a woman I met seven years ago was going to be arriving ro serve with her friends four hours after we started our shift. I was hoping we would be able to get them on our line.

They quickly filled our line with others and I didn't get to work along side my friend. However, we were able to talk about fifteen minutes and celebrated what God has done in each of our lives. When she arrived, I just happen to look up and could see her looking for me. When I looked at her, it was as if her eyes zeroed in on me and we squealed! We talked like two school girls giggling and hugging.

Afterward, we went to our assigned lines. Our group made friends with the others who had been assigned to our line. Even though I wanted the time with a friend from seven years ago, I had the pleasure to make new friends. There is a special bond built when you work side by side toward a common goal. Our line processed over 2,000 boxes. Praising God for what we were able to accomplish! That is something to celebrate!

Are you putting yourself in situations where you get the opportunity to make new friends? You have more love to give than you think and others need it. Many times we spin our wheels loving on the same people. I am certainly not saying we should disregard the friendships we have. I am saying we should not be afraid to expand our opportunities to make new friendships. We can get stuck in the same old, same old when God wants us to spread the love to others.

Father, I pray I would be willing to look for others who need to be loved. There are others who I need to receive Your love from and give Your love in return. I pray I would engage in the opportunities to expand my friendships and include others. I pray I would make the effort to really listen, engage, and truly become friends with others. I ask for You to point them out and show me how to get started in that friendship. Your love is more than enough for me. I pray I would share Your love with new and current friends in Jesus' name amen.

A Warrior in the Lord’s Army,

Veridee Joy Hand

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