FRIENDSHIP

FRIENDSHIP

“Quality of Life Series”

4/14/05

LEADER: No man is an island.

So what can we do to connect with others?

Motivational speaker and author, Zig Ziglar said,

FROM: http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"If you go looking for a friend, you're going to find they're very scarce. If you go out to be a friend, you'll find them everywhere."

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “Being An Indian-Type Friend” By Dick Innes

http://www.sermonillustrator.org/illustrator/sermon2/being_an_indian-typed_friend.htm

The North American Indians had no written language before they met the white man. Their language, however, was far from primitive. Many of the Indians had as many words in their vocabulary as their English and French exploiters. Some of their words were much more picturesque, too. For example, "friend" to the Indians was "one-who-carries-my-sorrows-on-his-back."

Everybody needs at least one trusted "Indian-type" friend with whom he or she can share his or her deepest sorrows and painful feelings. We all need a helping hand and a listening ear when we're going through difficult times.

How do we find such a friend? First, by praying and asking God to help us to be an "Indian-type" friend ourselves. Next, by getting the help we need to become this kind of friend. And then by asking God to help us find such a friend.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #1

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"A friend is a gift you give yourself."

Robert Louis Stevenson 1850-1894 Scottish novelist/essayist/poet

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #2

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"You can make more friends in two months by becoming genuinely interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you."

Dale Carnegie 1888-1955
American author, "How to Make Friends & Influence People"

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #3

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"I would rather have a million friends than a million dollars."

Eddie Rickenbacker 1890-1973
US pilot/hero WW2, Founded Rickenbacker Motor Car Co.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “Howard Hughs”

FROM: The Hidden Value of a Man, Smalley, Trent, pp. 133ff

http://www.bible.org/illus.asp?topic_id=584

It is reported that Howard Hughes, when worth approximately 4 billion dollars, said, “I’d give it all for one good friend.”

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #4

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"If all the gold in the world were melted down into a solid cube it would be about the size of an eight-room house. If a man got possession of all that gold — billions of dollars worth, he could not buy a friend, character, peace of mind, clear conscience, or a sense of eternity."

Charles F. Banning - Author

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #5

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"Someone has said that a friend is a bank of credit on which we can draw supplies of confidence, counsel, sympathy, help, and love. And that is true, for if you have a genuine friend, you possess riches greater than silver or gold. Which, of course, brings us to the other side of the question: Are you, and am I, the kind of friend that others can treasure?"

Esther Baldwin York - Poet

LEADER: What is friendship?

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #6

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"Friendship is a single soul dwelling in two bodies."

Aristotle 384-322 BC
Greek philosopher, student of Plato, tutor of Alexander the Great

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #7

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"By friendship you mean the greatest love, the greatest usefulness, the most open communication, the noblest sufferings, the severest truth, the heartiest counsel, and the greatest union of minds which brave men and women are capable."

Jeremy Taylor 1613-1667

English bishop & theological & devotional writer

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “British Publication” Bits & Pieces, July, 1991

http://www.bible.org/illus.asp?topic_id=584

A British publication once offered a prize for the best definition of a friend. Among the thousands of answers received were the following:
"One who multiplies joys, divides grief, and whose honesty is inviolable."
"One who understands our silence."
"A volume of sympathy bound in cloth."
"A watch that beats true for all time and never runs down."
The winning definition read: "A friend is the one who comes in when the whole world has gone out."

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #8

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"Between whom there is hearty truth, there is love; and in proportion to our truthfulness and confidence in one another, our lives are divine and miraculous, and answer to our ideal. . . . Friends do not live in harmony merely, as some say, but in melody."

Henry David Thoreau 1817-1862
American philosopher & naturalist, writer of Walden

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #9

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"Friendship is a sheltering tree."

Samuel Taylor Coleridge 1772-1834 English romantic poet/critic

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #10

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"Friendship is the inexpressible comfort of feeling safe with a person, having neither to weigh thoughts nor measure words."

Geroge Eliot 1819-1880 English novelist

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #11

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"My best friend is the one who brings out the best in me."

Henry Ford 1863-1947
American engineer & Industrialist, founder of Ford Motor in 1903

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #12

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"A real friend is someone who knows all your faults, but likes you anyway."

Charlie Brown by Charles M. Schultz - American cartoonist

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #13

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"A friend is someone who stays by your side all through the troubles he's caused you."

Marilyn vos Savant 1946- American writer, highest IQ ever of 228

HAVE SOMEONE READ: Galatians 6:2

"Share each other's troubles and problems, and so obey our Lord's command"

HAVE SOMEONE READ: Ecclesiastes 4:9-10

⁹Two are better than one because they have a good return for their labor. ¹⁰For if either of them falls, the one will lift up his companion. But woe to the one who falls when there is not another to lift him up.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #14

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"Support your friends — even in their mistakes. But be clear, however, that it is the friend and not the mistake you are supporting."

Hugh Prather - Author

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #15

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"Recipe for Friendship: 1 level head 1 big heart 1 small mouth 1 good ear ...and a pinch of poor memory."

Lila Stuart - Artist

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #16

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"Friendship makes prosperity brighter, while it lightens adversity by sharing its grieves and anxieties."

Cicero 106-43 BBC Roman orator/statesman/philosopher/writer

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #17

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"Friendship is precious, not only in the shade, but in the sunshine of life."

Thomas Jefferson 1743-1826 3^rd US President

Wrote Declaration of Independence

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #18

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"Friends . . . They are kind to each other's hopes. They cherish each other's dreams."

Henry David Thoreau 1817-1862

American philosopher & naturalist, writer of Walden

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #19

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"A friend is one to whom one may pour out all the contents of one's heart, chaff and grain together, knowing that the gentlest of hands will take and sift it, keep what is worth keeping, and with the breath of kindness blow the rest away."

unknown

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #20

http://www.sermoncentral.com/sermon.asp?SermonID=71264&ContributorID=1734

“Real friendship is shown in times of trouble; prosperity is full of friends.”

Euripides 484-406 B.C. Greek poet/playwright

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #21

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"So long as we love, we serve; so long as we are loved by others I would say that we are indispensable; and no man is useless while he has a friend."

Robert Louis Stevenson 1850-1894 Scottish novelist/essayist/poet

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #22

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

“The greatest healing therapy is friendship and love."

Hubert H. Humphrey 1911-1978 American statesman

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #23

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"We cannot tell the precise moment when friendship is formed. As in filling a vessel drop by drop, there is at last a drop which makes it run over. So in a series of kindness there is, at last, one which makes the heart run over."

James Boswell 1740-1795
Scottish author, biographer; wrote Life of Samuel Johnson

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #24

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"To laugh a bit and joke a bit And grasp a friendly hand; To love a bit and scold a bit And know they'll understand; To tell one's secrets, hopes and fears And share a friendly smile; To have a friend and be a friend Is what makes life worthwhile."

unknown

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #25

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"I cannot even imagine where I would be today were it not for that handful of friends who have given me a heart full of joy. Let's face it, friends make life a lot more fun."

Chuck Swindoll –

Author/ President, Dallas Theological Seminary 1994

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #26

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"Blessed is the man who has the gift of making friends; for it is one of God's best gifts. It involves many things, but above all the power of going out of one's own self and seeing and appreciating whatever is noble and loving in another."

Thomas Hughes 1822-1896 English author-jurist-reformer

LEADER: Should you choose just anyone to be your friend?

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “Bad Company”

http://www.sermonillustrator.org/illustrator/sermon8/hug_certificate.htm

An old parrot flew out of a farm house and joined some crows in a watermelon patch. The farmer, not knowing this and trying to protect his crop from the crows, blasted them with his shotgun. The results were dead crows and one ruffled parrot with a missing toe. The farmer tenderly took him home where the excited children gathered around and asked, "What did it?". The parrot answered, "Bad Company!" The parrot spoke wiser than he knew. His foolish choice of associates had endangered him. So it is with us - bad days come from bad companions, and better days with better associates.
"He that walketh with wise men shall be wise: but a companion of fools shall be destroyed. Evil pursueth sinners: but to the righteous good shall be repaid." Proverbs 13:20-21

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #27

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"Choose your friends carefully, for you will tend to be like them and be found where they choose to go."

Thomas S. Monson 1927-

American religious leader/business executive

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #28

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"Be careful the environment you choose for it will shape you; be careful the friends you choose for you will become like them."

W. Clement Stone 1902-2002 American entrepreneur

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #29

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"Choose your friends wisely. They will provide the foundation of spiritual strength that will enable you to make difficult, extremely important decisions correctly when they come in your life. Above all, be a friend of the Savior."

Malcolm S. Jeppsen 1924- American religious leader

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #30

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"The best mirror is an old friend."

George Herbert 1593-1633 English clergyman, writer/poet

LEADER: Friendship is an investment. It takes a long time to grow an old friend.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #31

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"What is it to stay young? It is the ability to hold fast to old friends, and to make new ones, to keep forever our beloved in dear remembrance, and to open our hearts quickly to a light knock on the door."

Cornelial Rogers 1902-1987 American psychologist

LEADER: How should we treat our friends?

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #32

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"We should behave to our friends as we would wish our friends to behave to us."

Aristotle 384-322 BC
Greek philosopher, student of Plato, tutor of Alexander the Great

LEADER: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #33

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"Treat your friends as you do your pictures, and place them in their best light."

Winston Churchill 1874-1965 British Prime Minister WWII

Nobel Prize for Literature 1953

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #34

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"Make use of your friends by being of use to them."

Benjamin Franklin 1706-1790 Entrepreneur/Sstatesman/Scientist

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #35

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"There is nothing so great that I fear to do it for my friend; nothing so small that I will disdain to do it for him."

Sir Philip Sidney 1554-1586 English poet, critic & writer

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #36

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

“Think to Thank. In these three words are the finest capsule course for a happy marriage, formula for enduring friendship, and a pattern for personal happiness."

Thomas S. Monson 1927-

American religious leader/business executive

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “The Facts About Friendship” By Paul Fritz EXCERPT

http://www.sermoncentral.com/sermon.asp?SermonID=47604&ContributorID=6170

Friendships should be on different levels. There are some friendships that will be on a mere acquaintance level, some will involve the sharing of facts, others will allow us to share more of our emotions and inner most feelings, other will be more engaging as we involve ourselves in sharing responsibilities and then finally there will be some rare friendships where we are able to be completely transparent, open and honest with a few close friends. Ask the Lord to help you be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding so you can know what level of friendship to have with each person you meet.
Our opinion of people depends less upon what we see in them than upon what they make us see in ourselves.

LEADER: What about false friends?

LEADER: QUOTE #37

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

If someone ceases to be a friend, he never was one.

unknown

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #38

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"A false friend and a shadow stay around only while the sun shines."

Benjamin Franklin 1706-1790
American entrepreneur, statesman, scientist & philosopher

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #39

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"There can be no friendship without confidence and no confidence without integrity."

Samuel Johnson 1709-1784

English poet/creator of first English dictionary

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #40

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"In (true) friendship we find nothing false or insincere; everything is straight forward, and springs from the heart."

Cicero 106-43 BBC Roman orator/statesman/philosopher/writer

HAVE SOMEONE READ: Ephesians 4:25-32 (ALL TURN TO)

²⁵Therefore, laying aside falsehood, SPEAK TRUTH EACH ONE of you WITH HIS NEIGHBOR, for we are members of one another. ²⁶BE ANGRY, AND yet DO NOT SIN; do not let the sun go down on your anger, ²⁷and do not give the devil an opportunity. ²⁸He who steals must steal no longer; but rather he must labor, performing with his own hands what is good, so that he will have something to share with one who has need. ²⁹Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear. ³⁰Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. ³¹Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. ³²Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven ^[a]you.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: Matthew 7:1-5 (ALL TURN TO)

¹"Do not judge so that you will not be judged. ²"For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you. ³"Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? ⁴"Or how can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' and behold, the log is in your own eye? ⁵"You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “What Is A Friend” Our Daily Bread 10/2/2000

http://www.rbc.org/odb/odb-10-02-00.shtml

No longer do I call you servants, . . . but I have called you friends.

John 15:15

Socrates once asked a simple old man what he was most thankful for. The man replied, "That being such as I am, I have had the friends I have had."

Some "friends" are fickle. In the book of Proverbs we read, "Wealth makes many friends, but the poor is separated from his friend" (19:4). A true friend, however, "loves at all times" (17:17) and "sticks closer than a brother" (18:24).

Our English word friend comes from the same root as the word freedom. A genuine friend sets us free to be who and what we are. We can pour out our doubts and talk freely about the wolves howling at the door of our life.

A faithful friend also affirms our worth. Queen Victoria said of William Gladstone, "When I am with him, I feel I am with one of the most important leaders in the world." But of Benjamin Disraeli she said, "He makes me feel as if I am one of the most important leaders of the world."

Christians have an inside track on making and being friends because we are part of one family. Haven't you felt that family tie while talking with a stranger—only to discover that you had Christ in common? And no wonder—He is the truest Friend anyone can have. —HWR

A friend accepts us as we are
Yet helps us be what we can be;
A friend affirms us when we're weak—
A friend gives strength to set us free. —DJD

Our best friends draw us closer to Christ.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “To Have One, Be One” Our Daily Bread 2/19/01

http://www.rbc.org/odb/odb-02-19-01.shtml

A man who has friends must himself be friendly. Proverbs 18:24

All of us need at least one or two close friends. A small boy defined a friend as "someone who knows all about you and likes you just the same." Ralph Waldo Emerson said, "A friend may well be reckoned the masterpiece of nature." Henry Durbanville made this observation about friendship: "A friend is the first person to come in when the whole world goes out."

Solomon wrote in Proverbs 17:17, "A friend loves at all times." We can't improve on that definition. To have someone who remains true to us under all circumstances is one of life's choicest blessings. The support and encouragement that only an intimate friend can offer is sorely needed when the burdens of life weigh heavily upon us. Jesus, of course, is the ultimate friend, for He laid down His life for His friends (John 15:13).

Proverbs 18:24 makes an important point and takes us beyond a description of what it means to be a friend. It says that "a man who has friends must himself be friendly." The implication is clear: Friendliness must begin with us. We must take the initiative in developing relationships with others. Let us be to others what we desire for ourselves. When it comes to friends, to have one you must be one! —RWD

I went outside to find a friend
But could not find one there;
I went outside to be a friend,
And friends were everywhere! —Anon.

Friends are seldom found; they are made. —Wentworth

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “Do You Care” Our Daily Bread 1/20/99 EXCERPT

You shall not cut off your kindness from my house forever.

1 Samuel 20:15

It's one thing to tell a friend you care. It's quite another to show it.

When we develop close friendships, we may also be called on to demonstrate by our actions that we care. The acrostic C-A-R-E can help us remember four key elements of friendship.

Challenge your friend to grow spiritually. A good friend knows the importance of turning the conversation toward matters of faith.

Affirm your friend's value. A phone call or a note can let your friend know how important he or she is and can keep your friendship strong.

Respect the feelings and wishes of your friend. No one wants a friend with whom ideas, dreams, and concerns fall on deaf ears. A good friend is a great sounding board.

Encourage your friend through compliments and by doing good deeds. Your friend will feel better after having been in your presence.

Do you have a friend you should care for today? --JDB

THINKING IT OVER
¹⁷Iron sharpens iron, So one man sharpens another. Proverbs 27:17. What does it mean for friends to "sharpen" each other as iron sharpens iron? Do any of your friendships sharpen you?

See a friend in need? Be a friend in deed.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “Predicting Success” By Neil Eskelin EXCERPT

http://www.sermonillustrator.org/illustrator/sermon2c/predicting_success.htm

Edward Hallowell, M.D., a senior lecturer at Harvard Medical School, says, "To thrive, indeed just to survive, we need warmhearted contact with other people. The close-to-the-vest, standoffish life is bad for your body and your soul. Like a vitamin deficiency, a human contact deficiency weakens the body, the mind, and the spirit."
How powerful are relationships? They can mark the difference between life and death. Dr. Lisa Berkman of the Harvard School of Public Health, headed a study that followed the lives of seven thousand people in Alameda County, California, for nine years. They inquired whether the people were married or lived alone, what kind of contact they had with friends and relatives, and whether or not they belonged to a church or other religious organizations.
When they evaluated the group's risk of dying, "the most isolated people were three times more likely to die in that nine year period than those with stronger social ties."
What lesson can we learn? Plug into the lives of others and build relationships that last.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #41

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"Cherish your human connections: your relationships with friends and family."

Barbara Bush 1925-

American First Lady, wife of President George Bush

HAVE SOMEONE READ: Philippians 2:1-4

¹Therefore if there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, ²make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose. ³Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; ⁴do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “Withstanding The Storm” Our Daily Bread 5/6/98

http://www.rbc.org/odb/odb-05-06-98.shtml

Stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel. --Philippians 1:27

When we stand together as Christians, we can endure the fierce onslaughts of adversity and the subtle attacks of our spiritual foe. But when we isolate ourselves, or if we're abandoned by those who should be there to uphold us, we are more likely to fall.

This is illustrated by the towering fir trees of Washington state. A few years ago a violent windstorm swept through the area and many trees that were standing by themselves were blown over. But those that grew tightly together in the forest did not fall because they were strengthened by their intertwining roots. They were able to withstand the strong winds. What they couldn't do by themselves, they were able to do together.

As followers of Jesus, we need each other. The apostle Paul told the believers in Philippi to "stand fast in one spirit" and to help one another as they faced adversity Philippians 1:27; 2:3-4. We too are to join arms and hearts, offering encouragement and hope in our struggles.

We may not know when a fellow Christian is being tossed around by the strong winds of adversity. But we do know this: When we stand together, we're better able to withstand the storm. --DCE

We join our hearts and hands together,
Faithful to the Lord's command;
We hold each other to God's standards--
All that truth and love demand. --DJD

We're stronger when we stand together.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “A Sticky Friend” Our Daily Bread 4/3/98

http://www.rbc.org/odb/odb-04-03-98.shtml

There is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.

Proverbs 18:24

The word friend is defined as "one attached to another by affection, regard, or esteem; an intimate acquaintance." Jesus defined friendship this way: "You are My friends if you do whatever I command you. . . . I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you" John 15:14-15.

A friend is one to whom we can tell everything and who will never betray a confidence. A true friend will not say anything that injures us. When we hear a group of Christians finding fault with other believers, we may wonder what they say about us when we're not present.

A true friend is one who knows all about us and loves us just the same. A young boy defined such a friend as "somebody who sticks to you after he has found you out."

A friend is one in whose presence we can be ourselves without the fear of being misunderstood. That person will not talk behind our back but is one to whom we can bare the secrets of our heart, knowing that we will not be betrayed. Such a friend is Jesus, the One who perfectly fulfills Solomon's words: "A friend loves at all times" Proverbs 17:17.

What kind of friend are you? --MRD

The kindest Friend I've ever had
Is One I cannot see,
Yet One in whom I can confide,
Who loves and blesses me. --Shuler

The best friends are like Jesus--they stick with you.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #42

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"I testify that our teacher, our shepherd, is Christ, our best friend, who clears up all our doubts. He heals our wounds and turns our pain into sweet experiences."

Horacio A. Tenorio 1935- American religious leader

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “Developing Your Friendship with God”

By Dennis Lawrence EXCERPT

http://www.sermoncentral.com/sermon.asp?SermonID=65453&ContributorID=5455

God is to be your closest friend. Last week, we looked at this and how, through prayer and meditation, you can be closer to Him than you are now. You, frankly, can be as close to God as you want to be and it depends on you. If you don’t feel close to God, you have to ask, “Who moved?” knowing that it wasn’t Him. As you and I learn to be God’s friend a spin-off benefit will be improved friendships with those who are your human friends? If we learn how to be ‘tight’ with God, we can take the same principles and be closer with our friends.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #43

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"My friends are my estate."

Emily Dickinson 1830-1886 American poet

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “Hidden Gems” By Terri Main

http://www.sermonillustrator.org/illustrator/sermon3a/hidden_gems.htm

"But We have this treasure in Earthen vessels..." 2 Corinthians 4:8
I remember reading a story once about a man who was exploring some caves by the seashore. In one of the caves he found a canvas bag with a bunch of hardened clay balls. It was like someone had rolled up some clay and left them out in the sun to bake. They didn't look like much, but they intrigued the man so he took the bag out of the cave with him.
As he strolled along the beach, to pass the time, he would throw the clay balls one at a time out into the ocean as far as he could throw. He thought little about it until he dropped one of the balls and it cracked open on a rock. Inside was a beautiful, precious stone. Excited the man started breaking open the remaining clay balls. Each contained a similar treasure. He found hundreds of dollars worth of jewels in the 20 or so clay balls he had left, then it struck him. He had been on the beach a long time. He had thrown maybe 50 or 60 of the clay balls with their hidden treasure into the ocean waves. Instead of hundreds of dollars in treasure, he could have taken home thousands, but he just threw it away.
You know sometimes, it's like that with people. We look at someone, maybe even ourselves, and we see the external clay vessel. It doesn't look like much from the outside. It isn't always beautiful or sparkling, so we discount it, we see that person as less important than someone more beautiful or stylish or well known or wealthy. But we have not taken the time to find the treasure hidden inside that person by God.
There is a treasure in each and every one of us. The Bible says we are fearfully and wonderfully made. I don't think he means just our physical bodies. I think he means our spiritual selves, which are sometimes hidden from others by the "earthen vessel." But if you take the time to get to know that person, and if you ask the Father to show you that person the way He sees them, then the clay begins to peel away and the brilliant gem begins to shine forth.
Don't come to the end of your life and find out that you threw away a fortune in friendships because the gems were hidden in bits of clay. Lord, let me see the people in my world as you see them today. Amen

HAVE SOMEONE READ: “Around The Corner”

http://www.sermonillustrator.org/illustrator/sermon1/around.htm

Around the corner I have a friend,

In this great city that has no end,

Yet the days go by and weeks rush on,

And before I know it, a year is gone.

And I never see my old friend's face,

For life is a swift and terrible race,

He knows I like him just as well,

As in the days when I rang his bell.

And he rang mine.

If, we were younger then,

And now we are busy, tired men.

Tired of playing a foolish game,

Tired of trying to make a name.

"Tomorrow" I say, "I will call on Jim."

"Just to show that I'm thinking of him."

But tomorrow comes and tomorrow goes,

And distance between us grows and grows.

Around the corner! - Yet miles away,

"Here's a telegram sir."

"Jim died today."

And that's what we get and deserve in the end.

Around the corner, a vanished friend.

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #44

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"My friends are little lamps to me, Their radiance warms and cheers my ways, And all the pathway dark and lone Is brightened by their rays. I try to keep them bright by faith, And never let them dim with doubt; For every time I lose a friend A little lamp goes out."

Elizabeth Whittemore – Author- from My Friends

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #45

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"Do not save your loving speeches For your friends till they are dead; Do not write them on their tombstones, Speak them rather now instead."

Anna Cummins - Author

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #46

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"I still find each day too short for all the thoughts I want to think, all the walks I want to take, all the books I want to read, and all the friends I want to see. The longer I live the more my mind dwells upon the beauty and the wonder of the world."

John Burroughs 1837-1921 American naturalist

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #47

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"At the end of your life, you will never regret not having passed one more test, not winning one more verdict or not closing one more deal. You will regret time not spent with a husband, a friend, a child, or a parent."

Barbara Bush 1925-

American First Lady, wife of President George Bush

HAVE SOMEONE READ: QUOTE #48

http://www.zaadz.com/quotes/topics/friendship/

"Every house where love abides And friendship is a guest, Is surely home, and home, sweet home For there the heart can rest."

Henry van Dyke 1852-1933 American clergyman & writer

LEADER: After all we’ve learned about friendship……If you were another person would you like to be a friend of yours?

LEADER: Here’s a letter from a friend who loves you unconditionally:

“A Letter From A Friend”

http://www.sermonillustrator.org/illustrator/sermon1/aletter1.htm

I just had to write to tell you how much I love you and care for you. Yesterday, I saw you walking and laughing with your friends; I hoped that soon you'd want Me to walk along with you, too. So, I painted you a sunset to close your day and whispered a cool breeze to refresh you. I waited, but you never called. I just kept on loving you.

As I watched you fall asleep last night, I wanted so much to touch you. I spilled moonlight onto your face- trickling down your cheeks as so many tears have. You didn't even think of me; I wanted so much to comfort you.

The next day I exploded a brilliant sunrise into a glorious morning for you. But you woke up late and rushed off to work - you didn't even notice. My sky became cloudy and My tears were the rain.

I love you. Oh, if you'd only listen. I really love you. I try to say it in the quiet of the green meadow and in the blue sky. The wind whispers My love throughout the treetops and spills it into the vibrant colors of the flowers. I shout it to you in the thunder of the great waterfalls and compose love songs for bands to sing for you. I warm you with the clothing of My sunshine and perfume the air with nature's sweet scent.

My love for you is deeper than the ocean and greater than any need in your heart. If you'd only realize how I care. I died just for you.

My Dad sends His love. I want you to meet Him. He cares, too. Fathers are just that way. So please call Me soon. No matter how long it takes, I'll wait because I love you.

Your Friend,

Jesus

COMMENTS IF TIME:

STOP AT 15 TILL FOR

PRAYER REQUESTS AND PRAISES:

CUT AND DISTRIBUTE FOR READING:

“Being An Indian-Type Friend”

QUOTE #1

"A friend is a gift you give yourself."

Robert Louis Stevenson 1850-1894 Scottish novelist/essayist/poet

QUOTE #2

"You can make more friends in two months by becoming genuinely interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you."

Dale Carnegie 1888-1955
American author, "How to Make Friends & Influence People"

QUOTE #3

"I would rather have a million friends than a million dollars."

Eddie Rickenbacker 1890-1973
US pilot/hero WW2, Founded Rickenbacker Motor Car Co.

“Howard Hughs”

It is reported that Howard Hughes, when worth approximately 4 billion dollars, said, “I’d give it all for one good friend.”

QUOTE #4

Charles F. Banning - Author

QUOTE #5

Esther Baldwin York - Poet

QUOTE #6

"Friendship is a single soul dwelling in two bodies."

Aristotle 384-322 BC
Greek philosopher, student of Plato, tutor of Alexander the Great

QUOTE #7

Jeremy Taylor 1613-1667 English bishop & theological & devotional writer

“British Publication”

QUOTE #8

Henry David Thoreau 1817-1862 American philosopher & naturalist, writer of Walden

QUOTE #9

"Friendship is a sheltering tree."

Samuel Taylor Coleridge 1772-1834 English romantic poet/critic

QUOTE #10

"Friendship is the inexpressible comfort of feeling safe with a person, having neither to weigh thoughts nor measure words."

Geroge Eliot 1819-1880 English novelist

QUOTE #11

"My best friend is the one who brings out the best in me."

Henry Ford 1863-1947

American engineer & Industrialist, founder of Ford Motor in 1903

QUOTE #12

"A real friend is someone who knows all your faults, but likes you anyway."

Charlie Brown by Charles M. Schultz - American cartoonist

QUOTE #13

"A friend is someone who stays by your side all through the troubles he's caused you."

Marilyn vos Savant 1946- American writer, highest IQ ever of 228

Galatians 6:2

Ecclesiastes 4:9-10

QUOTE #14

"Support your friends — even in their mistakes. But be clear, however, that it is the friend and not the mistake you are supporting."

Hugh Prather - Author

QUOTE #15

"Recipe for Friendship: 1 level head 1 big heart 1 small mouth 1 good ear ...and a pinch of poor memory."

Lila Stuart - Artist

QUOTE #16

"Friendship makes prosperity brighter, while it lightens adversity by sharing its grieves and anxieties."

Cicero 106-43 BBC Roman orator/statesman/philosopher/writer

QUOTE #17

"Friendship is precious, not only in the shade, but in the sunshine of life."

Thomas Jefferson 1743-1826 3^rd US President

Wrote Declaration of Independence

QUOTE #18

"Friends . . . They are kind to each other's hopes. They cherish each other's dreams."

Henry David Thoreau 1817-1862

American philosopher & naturalist, writer of Walden

QUOTE #19

unknown

QUOTE #20

“Real friendship is shown in times of trouble; prosperity is full of friends.”

Euripides 484-406 B.C. Greek poet/playwright

QUOTE #21

"So long as we love, we serve; so long as we are loved by others I would say that we are indispensable; and no man is useless while he has a friend."

Robert Louis Stevenson 1850-1894 Scottish novelist/essayist/poet

QUOTE #22

“The greatest healing therapy is friendship and love."

Hubert H. Humphrey 1911-1978 American statesman

QUOTE #23

James Boswell 1740-1795
Scottish author, biographer; wrote Life of Samuel Johnson

QUOTE #24

unknown

QUOTE #25

"I cannot even imagine where I would be today were it not for that handful of friends who have given me a heart full of joy. Let's face it, friends make life a lot more fun."

Chuck Swindoll – Author/ President, Dallas Theological Seminary 1994

QUOTE #26

Thomas Hughes 1822-1896 English author-jurist-reformer

“Bad Company”

QUOTE #27

"Choose your friends carefully, for you will tend to be like them and be found where they choose to go."

Thomas S. Monson 1927- American religious leader/business executive

QUOTE #28

"Be careful the environment you choose for it will shape you; be careful the friends you choose for you will become like them."

W. Clement Stone 1902-2002 American entrepreneur

QUOTE #29

Malcolm S. Jeppsen 1924- American religious leader

QUOTE #30

"The best mirror is an old friend."

George Herbert 1593-1633 English clergyman, writer/poet

QUOTE #31

Cornelial Rogers 1902-1987 American psychologist

QUOTE #32

"We should behave to our friends as we would wish our friends to behave to us."

Aristotle 384-322 BC
Greek philosopher, student of Plato, tutor of Alexander the Great

QUOTE #33

"Treat your friends as you do your pictures, and place them in their best light."

Winston Churchill 1874-1965 British Prime Minister WWII

Nobel Prize for Literature 1953

QUOTE #34

"Make use of your friends by being of use to them."

Benjamin Franklin 1706-1790 Entrepreneur/Sstatesman/Scientist

QUOTE #35

"There is nothing so great that I fear to do it for my friend; nothing so small that I will disdain to do it for him."

Sir Philip Sidney 1554-1586 English poet, critic & writer

QUOTE #36

“Think to Thank. In these three words are the finest capsule course for a happy marriage, formula for enduring friendship, and a pattern for personal happiness."

Thomas S. Monson 1927-

American religious leader/business executive

“The Facts About Friendship”

QUOTE #38

"A false friend and a shadow stay around only while the sun shines."

Benjamin Franklin 1706-1790
American entrepreneur, statesman, scientist & philosopher

QUOTE #39

"There can be no friendship without confidence and no confidence without integrity."

Samuel Johnson 1709-1784

English poet/creator of first English dictionary

QUOTE #40

"In (true) friendship we find nothing false or insincere; everything is straight forward, and springs from the heart."

Cicero 106-43 BBC Roman orator/statesman/philosopher/writer

Ephesians 4:25-32

Matthew 7:1-5

“What Is A Friend”

No longer do I call you servants, . . . but I have called you friends.

John 15:15

Socrates once asked a simple old man what he was most thankful for. The man replied, "That being such as I am, I have had the friends I have had."