One of God’s great gifts to his children are good and faithful friends. Good and godly friends are as precious as they are rare. What makes a great friend? What makes a godly friend? Is it merely someone you share a hobby with? Is it someone you can talk shop with? Those can play a part, but the book of Proverbs helps us understand the value of a good friend. Great friends sharpen us, are faithful, and love in adversity—which is often modeled in saying what we need to hear, not merely what we want to hear. Consider the following verses…

Proverbs 27:9 – Oil and perfume make the heart glad, and the sweetness of a friend comes from his earnest counsel.

Proverbs 27:6 – Faithful are the wounds of a friend; profuse are the kisses of an enemy.

Proverbs 27:17 – Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another.

Proverbs 17:17 – A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.

Great and godly friends are those who continually point us to Jesus. Our flesh is tempted to want those who flatter us, but we know flattery is Satanic and good friends often speak to us about what we need to hear, not necessarily what we want to hear.

A godly friend of mine recently wrote on the topic of friendship. He said, “As the years go by, I find that my most faithful friends are those who point my heart to eternity and help me assess the cares and difficulties of this world in their proper light. Oh how I bow in thanks to God for those in my life that lift my gaze heavenward from where my true help and true hope come – Jesus!” Sometimes in life we forget what we need most—for our hearts and minds to be set heavenward and look to Jesus always. Praise be to the Lord when he uses good friends to point us in the right direction.

Think back over the past few months, few years, or even decades and let your heart rejoice in thankfulness for a friend or friends the Lord has put in your life who have “loved at all times” and who have “sharpened you as iron” and who have been faithful in the midst of giving you earnest counsel and helping point your heart heavenward.

In a season of life where we all miss face-to-face interaction with our dear friends, let us be found thanking God continually for them. Likewise, be prayerful of how the Lord is calling you to be a great and godly friend in this trying season of life.