One of the greatest gifts that anyone can be given are FRIENDS. But, what’s the definition in today’s society where contracts are entered into to be broken, marriages are consummated to be terminated, and families are started to be separated. Friends aren’t those who love you while things are good, when they are in agreement with your thoughts, when your lifestyle meets their approval, but friends are those who hang with you in good times and bad, thick and thin, agreement and disagreements. These last two weekends have reminded me of the most treasured things in life.
I have seven great friends in my wife and the eldership of LRC that has walked with me for nearly twenty years now and being able to spend the weekend before last together in an over night deep discussion of our differences, but our commitment to each other regardless of how we all individually agree is called COVENANT.
Covenant is an awesome Godly thing. 
Yesterday I got to be with them again as well as Ron and Ann Corzine whom I’ve known for nearly two decades who have been with us through all kinds of storms and victories. And we began developing new friendships with great people that I’m anxious to see what God does.
Driving up to Boerne, Texas and on the way back I talked to another near twenty year relationship and covenant: Rick Godwin.
Awaiting me at home were dozens of emails from growing friendships.
Life is good when you find a couple of people who will navigate life with you. It starts with a spouse and then we get to practice with all kinds of people in all kinds of situations and therein we discover somewhere down the road, by the number of friends we have, what kind of FRIEND we have BEEN!
To HAVE friends you have to BE A FRIEND.
I’m talking covenant stuff here, not relationships that come and go with business deals, social engagements that last as long as each party is benefiting, church relationships as long as doctrines are the same, or employee-employer relationships for what each brings to the table.
Know what I mean?
Yes, I do. I have a friend (whom I have always considered a “kindred spirit”) of 27 years and though we live miles apart and have for some 25 years of that 27 we can pick up the phone and we talk as though it was only yesterday when we last spoke. Like it is with God and I, we IS.
IS and AM are good places to BE for those that just ARE.