Proverbs 27:9

Oil and perfume make the heart glad,
    and the sweetness of a friend comes from his earnest counsel.

Friendship is often portrayed on sitcoms as a group of people continually taking verbal jabs at one another or laughing at someone’s expense. That is not friendship.

God brings you gifts in the form of true friends to enjoy life with and help you with life’s many questions and challenges. He knows that we need each other and we are blessed by the fellowship of close friendships.

You may have a problem that keeps you up at night. Life could not be worse, then a friend appears and offers insight that you never considered. How wonderful that is!

Or maybe you are offered a new job or a relationship is getting serious- everything seems to be falling into place. Then a friend who knows you well comes along side. He knows your blind spots and brings them to light. Your friend sees the pitfalls you can’t see for yourself. His counsel may be hard to receive, but as you consider it, you realize he may have saved you from disaster. How good it is to have such friends.

Someone who knows and loves you will bring all their resources and gifts to bear to help you. That is a tangible, bottom line definition of friendship. A godly friend brings even more resources into a relationship. A godly friend brings a mixture of knowledge, love, wisdom, and commitment that gives any counsel they offer a sweet aroma.

We all need friends like that and perhaps we are yearning for friends like that now. A key to having good friends is to be a good friend. You can do this by reading scripture for wisdom so that you can provide sound counsel. By prayer—praying not for friends, but to be a friend to others. And by developing the fruit of the Holy Spirit in our lives—making us more loving, patient, and compassionate, for instance.

How many real friends do you have? Even more important, how many people consider you to be a true friend of theirs?