Four
Someone once said, you are the average of the five people you spend most of your time with.
And I cannot stop pondering this powerfully convicting thought.
Would Jesus approve of our inner circle?
Not only did Jesus model the beauty of friendship, He highlighted the significance of biblical comradery, living a life of tender fellowship with some of his dearest friends.
Our friendships matter deeply to the Kingdom because they have the power to change the trajectory of our lives. We need the type of friends who will speak life, edify, encourage, build up, and propel us forward. The compassion of a sister who will sit with us while we grieve and mourn with us while we mourn. We need courageous friends who will speak truth to our sinful hearts, encouraging us to flee from temptation. We need powerful prayer warriors, who will resolutely proclaim restoration, rather than condoning retaliation. We need wise friends, who seek Jesus on a daily basis, and compel us to do the same. And if we should find ourselves in dark seasons, caught up in self-pity, dwelling in the pit of isolation, we need the tenacity of fearless friends, who will pick us up when we are stuck, and carry us to Jesus….
“While he was preaching God’s word to them, four men arrived carrying a paralyzed man on a mat. They couldn’t bring him to Jesus because of the crowd, so they dug a hole through the roof above his head. Then they lowered the man on his mat, right down in front of Jesus. Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralyzed man, “My child, your sins are forgiven.”
The fervor of our friends’ faith matters. A spirit of fear can do more damage in the recesses of our thought life than any physical barrier ever will. Fear keeps us stuck in our brokenness, lying on our proverbial mats, stricken by spiritual paralysis. But, faith. Faith moves us forward.
The genuine compassion of a true friend will love a sister too much to leave her lying on her mat; unwilling to condone spiritual apathy; knowing lack of movement will lead to spiritual atrophy.
“Two are better than one because they have a good return for their labor. For 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.” (Ecclesiastes 4:9)
When life’s circumstances leave us mat-stricken, consumed with fear, anxiety, defeat, depression, grief, a crumbling marriage, a sick child, a broken dream, the loss of a job, an identity crisis… will our inner circle, encircle us, and lead us to our Healer? Jesus looked on their faith with favor. It was the faith of the four that brought healing to their beloved friend. How we love our brothers and sisters in Christ matters. The moxie of these faithful four inspires me to love with action. That they would rally together, lift their friends’ mat, and carry him for miles to the Great Physician. And when they arrived, the door was blocked. But that didn’t stop them. Their faith enabled them to keep going. They loved their friend too much to leave him lying on his mat. They set him down, maybe regained their breath while they considered what to do next. They climbed up onto the roof—while still carrying their friend—undoubtably drained from the physical labor all this entailed. But they loved him too much to leave him on his mat. And when they reached the top, only a ceiling separated them from the Messiah. They must have pondered what to do next, if even for only a minute, their minds must have felt the physical divide of the roof upon which they were standing on. So they began to dig. Literally mining their way to Jesus. I
can only imaging how long it must take to delve through a rough. They walked, they carried, they climbed, they dug, and lastly, they lowered. When the hole was finally big enough, they used every last muscle in their fatigued bodies to lower their beloved friend to Jesus.
The beauty of selfless love is stunning.
Oh Lord, grant us faith like these courageous four. A crazy faith that goes to any length to be in Your presence.
I thank God that He has gifted me with these kind of friends. Brave sisters, who have carried me, when I couldn’t walk, when I couldn’t see beyond my bleak circumstance’s. They lifted me up on their shoulders and shouldered my burden with the power of prayer. Their faith ushered me into the presence of Jesus when I was too distraught, discouraged, and disheartened, to come on my own. They dug though my self-erected walls, like the four fervently dredged through the roof. They interceded for me, and selflessly carried me to Jesus.
Choose the kind of friends who will carry you. And be willing to carry them. We’re not all sick on the same day and were not all well on the same day. We need each other to speak truth to the lies Satan wants us to believe. The lies which keep us stuck on our mats. Throughout life, the valley seasons will ebb and flow, and so will the one who is being carried.
Is there anyone I need to carry to Jesus today?
