He Speaks to Me Like a Friend

If I were to meet someone I idolized I can only imagine the nervousness I would feel.  I can’t imagine speaking to them with much comfort.  For one, we do not know each other.  I would know them, but I wouldn’t KNOW them. I don’t know the real them, only what I saw on the surface.  They try to speak to me as a friend, but they wouldn’t know me either.

When I come in contact with someone I try to speak to them “as a friend”.  If they are coming to me for a benevolent reason, then to talk down to them is going to make them feel uncomfortable and defensive. If they are in a crisis, to not talk to them as a friend is going to turn them away.  If they come just because they know me, to appear “higher” than they are is not going to give a good impression.

To talk to someone that you hardly know, as a friend, is going to make a positive impact.  As a minister I am in that position fairly regularly.  Most of the time it can be pretty easy, but if something has negatively impacted my day, then it can be a bit more challenging.

As we looked at the interaction between Moses and God (Exodus 33:11) as a man speaking to a friend, may we be encouraged to know that the Christian is His friend as well.  What a place to be at!  Here are some applications to choose from to use this week…

1. Talk to Him as a Friend ~ Just as God speaks “as a friend”, you should do the same with Him.  Whenever you are trying to get your thoughts out there, don’t feel like you have to use a lot of “Christianese” type talking (i.e. thee’s, thou’s, Heavenly Father, guide-guard-and-direct, etc), just speak to God as He was a friend. One way for me is to pray with your eyes open, like while driving.
2. Enjoy the Friendship ~ Sometimes you may feel like God is “distant”. That may or may not be true, but one way to remedy that issue is to treat Him like any other relationship.  If you are far away, you will make efforts to get together or talk about your life together. If you are closer in proximity, you will see each other and share life together, that’s the way a life with God should be like.
3. Be a Friend ~ As God is the highest “idol” you could ever want to talk to, and He will speak to us as a friend (regardless of who we are), speak to others with similar understanding.  Try not to let social standing or other life experiences to cloud your thoughts of how you will interact with someone who has come to you, regardless of why they came to you.

I enjoy the fact that God does not look down on me and not talk to me, but views me as His friend!  Let others see you do not look down on them but view them as a friend!

Reveling in the encouragement that He is my friend and I am His!