Latest / The Living Freed Podcast / Holy Friendships
Transcript
- 0:20Hey, I'm Hannah Liz, a coastal living, Jesus
- 0:23loving, NC native, and you're listening to the
- 0:25Living Freed Podcast. This podcast is for the
- 0:29girlies, the girls who feel weighed down by the
- 0:31chains of the world or the chains of the legalism
- 0:33in their church, who want to walk free in the
- 0:36life they know God created for them, who want
- 0:39to heal their hurt and heartbreak, is into self
- 0:41-growth, wants to deepen her relationship with
- 0:43Jesus and build community. Today we're talking
- 0:51about holy friendships, not just friends, not
- 0:53just the girls we call our besties, but holy
- 0:56friendships. I did not even know what a holy
- 0:59friendship was or what that experience was like
- 1:02until I would say maybe last year it really hit
- 1:06me. Now, I've been lucky enough to have a holy
- 1:08friendship for a very long time, but I want to
- 1:11back up a little bit in my personal story, okay?
- 1:14I remember when I first moved out to SoCal. I
- 1:17didn't know a soul y 'all I cried for like three
- 1:20months straight Because I had never been alone.
- 1:24I went from my small hometown and praying actually
- 1:28praying like Seriously, I had a prayer i'd say
- 1:31in the car before going into the gas station
- 1:33or the grocery store Actually, i'll tell you
- 1:35what that prayer was. I went a little like this
- 1:37dear lord heavenly father Please don't let me
- 1:40see anyone. I know jesus name. Amen And if I
- 1:43didn't say that prayer, then odds were high I'd
- 1:45run into someone I knew. Now, you might think
- 1:48there's no way that prayer worked, but I'm a
- 1:50firm believer that God cares about the small
- 1:52things as much as the big things. And He knew
- 1:54it was no small thing nor too big of a thing
- 1:58for when I ran into someone in public that I
- 2:00did not feel like seeing. Anyways, I left my
- 2:03small town and moved to a town I'd never been
- 2:05to before, and I've never in my life wished more
- 2:08to know another soul. to have a friend and someone
- 2:12know me. I'd never been so lonely in my life.
- 2:15And mentally, I knew it was temporary. And again,
- 2:18it was only the first three months in, but it
- 2:20was still so hard when you go from knowing everyone
- 2:23and their cousin to knowing no one. Obviously,
- 2:27I made friends eventually, but I'll never forget
- 2:29when my new roommate Krista moved in. Krista
- 2:32is my bestie for the rest of my life. The amount
- 2:35of love I have for this girl, she will never
- 2:37know. I truly see her as one of my soulmates.
- 2:42Sadly, we don't speak at the moment, and that's
- 2:44a conversation for another time, but I still
- 2:46have so much love for her. Krista knows me on
- 2:50a level no one else ever has. We were so similar
- 2:53in so many ways, but yet so different. Krista
- 2:57is an atheist, and obviously, I love Jesus a
- 2:59lot. But when I was going to church by myself,
- 3:02she offered to go with me. if it would make me
- 3:05more comfortable to have someone else there.
- 3:08That's the type of person she is. When she loves,
- 3:11she loves deeply, just like me. As much as I
- 3:14love her, she isn't one of my holy friendships.
- 3:17My holy friendship is my best friend of 20 plus
- 3:20years, the girl I've known since childhood, Serena.
- 3:24Serena could not be more opposite from me in
- 3:27every possible way. All we really have in common
- 3:30is one, our love for Jesus, two, so many years
- 3:33of friendship, and three, our love for each other.
- 3:36And by opposite, I mean she's athletic and I
- 3:40trip when I walk on the sidewalk. She can sing.
- 3:43I can't even do karaoke or carry a tune. She's
- 3:48an extrovert in every possible way, even if she
- 3:50doesn't see herself that way. And I get exhausted
- 3:53after one night out and need two days to recover
- 3:55from being around people. But Serena knows me
- 3:58on a different level. She knows why I react to
- 4:01the things I'm reacting to. She knows why I'm
- 4:03crying. She knows why I'm laughing before I tell
- 4:05her. A few summers ago, something kind of traumatic
- 4:08had happened. She was the first person I told
- 4:11the next morning. I didn't even tell Krista.
- 4:13I woke up and I texted Serena right away. But
- 4:16I told her I was fine and that it was really
- 4:19no big deal at all. I'm good. It's cool. It's
- 4:22done. What's happened has happened. But no biggie.
- 4:25Later that day I called again and said I had
- 4:28had time to process and actually it was a big
- 4:30deal and that I was hurting She said she knew
- 4:33and had been waiting for me to get there on my
- 4:35own Like what a true friend to know that hey,
- 4:39it's gonna take her some time to process this
- 4:41and I'm gonna wait I'm not gonna push her to
- 4:43get there I'm not gonna tell her how bad of a
- 4:45thing it was because she will when her brains
- 4:47ready deal with it process it and we'll talk
- 4:50more. When I'm stressed, she's one of the few
- 4:53people who know how to step away and let me work
- 4:55through it. When I'm hurting, I don't have to
- 4:58tell her. We've been friends for so long, it's
- 5:01truly like having a sister know you on the deepest
- 5:03level possible. Serena knows my heart and my
- 5:06mind on a level I could say most of my own family
- 5:09doesn't know. She calls me out when I'm not aligned
- 5:11with the word of God. She speaks truth, life,
- 5:14and boldness into me. She knows my relationship
- 5:16with Jesus almost as well as I know it myself.
- 5:19She questions me on my walk when I need to be
- 5:21questioned. She creates space for me to question
- 5:23God and doesn't judge me for it. We talk, debate
- 5:26our thoughts or revelations that come to each
- 5:28other in our journey with the Lord. This friendship
- 5:31is the core of my holy friendships. My mom has
- 5:34always told me you only need one or two really
- 5:36good friends in life and I've been so lucky to
- 5:38have Serena as a lifelong friend and so many
- 5:41others come along the way. My other holy friendships
- 5:43happened when I moved to Wilmington. I spent
- 5:46the first year and a half here just making friends.
- 5:48That's all. Friends from church small groups,
- 5:51friends from work, friends from bars, just friends.
- 5:53I found myself being friends with a lot of guys
- 5:55and let me tell you now, that was never my goal.
- 5:59In fact, I went in with the opposite goal. Because
- 6:01that guy from episode 2 that I said I really
- 6:04admired and valued his opinion had told me I
- 6:07was friends with way too many guys in the first
- 6:09place. And so when I was moving to this new town,
- 6:11he recommended that I try to be friends with
- 6:13girls and not guys. Now, being friends with boys
- 6:16has never been my intention. I've never been
- 6:18that girl that's like, I'm a boys girl. No. I
- 6:21do hair. I am a girls girl. I fight to be friends
- 6:24with girls. I don't know how it happened. I just
- 6:26happened to make a lot of guy friends when I
- 6:28first moved to Wilmington. Now I had a couple
- 6:30of good girlfriends and maybe one Wilmington
- 6:34bestie, but it felt like I didn't see the few
- 6:36girls I knew enough and I was somehow always
- 6:39with the guys. It might have been because one
- 6:41of those guys was my cousin and we lived together.
- 6:44I don't know if it was because they knew I'd
- 6:46feed them when we hung out. or maybe they knew
- 6:49I'd introduce them to girls. But it actually
- 6:51made me want to scream ma being around so much
- 6:54testosterone. I was in my room one day after
- 6:57the guys had finally left, and I felt God say
- 6:59that I needed to pray over having holy girl friendships.
- 7:03I knew girls, I was friends with girls, and more
- 7:06importantly, they were Christian girls. But our
- 7:08friendships weren't Christ -centered, and I knew
- 7:10it. I knew it was time for me to grow deep in
- 7:13my relationship with Jesus. and not feel so alone
- 7:16in my faith journey here in Wilmington. Because
- 7:18I did feel alone. Like for example, I'm celibate
- 7:22and almost none of my friends here were. And
- 7:24I didn't feel like I could talk to them about
- 7:26that part of my walk. I didn't feel like I could
- 7:29talk with them about my doubts or my struggles
- 7:32in my walk when they would arise. I felt very
- 7:34isolated in my faith. Have you ever felt that
- 7:37way? Have you ever felt so alone that there was
- 7:40no one for you to tell your sins to? No one for
- 7:43you to make confession to? No one to lift you
- 7:45up. Maybe you were really excited about something
- 7:48that God has revealed to you and there was no
- 7:49one for you to share that excitement with. Being
- 7:51alone in that sucks. It's hard, y 'all. It is
- 7:56so hard to be so alone. I would call my mom crying
- 8:00about it because I'd not felt so alone. I mean,
- 8:02yes, I had Serena and I would call her. But she
- 8:05was so far away from me. She didn't live in Wilmington.
- 8:08She could celebrate with me over the phone. But
- 8:11when I had in -the -moment struggles, when I
- 8:13was making these deep connections, I felt like
- 8:15these people didn't really know me because they
- 8:17were missing out on a whole other part of my
- 8:19life. The holy friendships I have here are the
- 8:22girls that reach out to me. They tell me that
- 8:24they're praying over me randomly on the day I
- 8:26need it most, send me worship songs, laugh with
- 8:29me, cry with me, and let me cry with them. We're
- 8:31open about our new convictions God has placed
- 8:33on our hearts and we hold each other up, but
- 8:36most importantly, we hold each other accountable
- 8:38and with grace. Our friendships are sunset walks,
- 8:41openly admiring God's work, and it's coffee shop
- 8:44conversations. It's building prayer boards together
- 8:47and bringing a care basket after surgery. It's
- 8:50being able to ask them where they see you can
- 8:52grow as a person in Christ and them taking the
- 8:55time to think about it and being honest with
- 8:57their answer. It's not always us going to church
- 8:59together. It's us doing life together with Jesus
- 9:02at the center of it. We all have friends and
- 9:05we probably all have Christian friends, but is
- 9:07your friendship holy? Is it lower you through
- 9:10the roof with faith holy? My whole life, my mom
- 9:13would say to us kids, show me your friends and
- 9:16I'll tell you who you are. I took it as my friends
- 9:18would influence me, but as I got older, I also
- 9:21realized it also means who I'm friends with will
- 9:24represent who I am to those who don't know me.
- 9:28I look back on my teens and early twenties and
- 9:30I'm so thankful for the friends I had, but some
- 9:33of them I could have done without. I had plenty
- 9:36of Christian friends my whole life, like I grew
- 9:38up in the Bible Belt, so of course I did, but
- 9:40only one of them until now can I say was a holy
- 9:43friendship. Not all of my Christian friendships
- 9:45encouraged my walk with the Lord. I had one really
- 9:48good friend that I was very close with from church.
- 9:50Not only was she cheating on her boyfriend, but
- 9:53she encouraged me to have sex with mine that
- 9:56I had just started dating. And when she had encouraged
- 9:59that, I had just told her minutes prior how him
- 10:02and I had had a discussion of waiting until we
- 10:04were married at that very time. I had Christian
- 10:07friends that had been my best friend, and they
- 10:09blamed me for them dropping out of college and
- 10:11doing drugs and couldn't hold themselves accountable.
- 10:14I had friends that actively would judge others
- 10:16and leave them out. And if you know anything
- 10:18about me, I'm a very inclusive person. I'm not
- 10:21exclusive. I had Christian friends that if you
- 10:23didn't live exactly how they expected you to,
- 10:26to their standards, then you were dropped as
- 10:27a friend. I had friends that didn't strengthen
- 10:30my relationship with Christ and definitely didn't
- 10:33make wanting to walk this earth enjoyable with
- 10:35them either. Just because they're a Christian
- 10:38and your friend doesn't mean it's a holy friendship.
- 10:40If good fruit isn't being produced from that
- 10:43friendship, then it's not a good friendship.
- 10:45Just because they're Christian and your friend
- 10:47doesn't mean it has to be a holy friendship.
- 10:49But we need holy friendships. How can we tell
- 10:52if we have a holy friendship? Well, I'm going
- 10:55to give you a list of green flags to look for
- 10:57in your holy friendship. 1. This friendship allows
- 11:01you to grow and change. 2. They respect your
- 11:04boundaries. 3. They allow you to change your
- 11:08opinion on things. 4. They care for your heart.
- 11:115. You speak truth to each other, even when it's
- 11:14uncomfortable. 6. You hold each other accountable
- 11:17and it's expected to. 7. They create space for
- 11:21you to cry and laugh depending on your season
- 11:24and moment. 8. You are open about your struggles
- 11:27with each other. 9. You can talk about your hurts.
- 11:3110. Can you share your questions or doubts you
- 11:34bring to God with them? 11. Do you pray over
- 11:38each other? Are you open about what God is or
- 11:44isn't doing in your life? You ask each other
- 11:48the hard and uncomfortable questions. You check
- 11:51in with each other when you need accountability
- 11:53with your struggles or sin. You speak scripture
- 11:57over each other. You can point out to each other
- 12:02where Jesus is showing up in the other's life.
- 12:06If you need healing, they help you and walk with
- 12:08you through it. What about yourselves? Will you
- 12:12put aside to help or support the other? There
- 12:16is trust between you. Do they hold your secrets
- 12:19and can you trust their words to speak truth
- 12:21and life into you? You feel loved by Jesus when
- 12:25around them. You know Jesus better by being around
- 12:30them. You're made bolder for Christ by being
- 12:35around each other. I hope we've all been lucky
- 12:38enough to have friends where we get glimpses
- 12:41or moments of those things that have been listed.
- 12:43I know I have. Every time I got to have one of
- 12:46those moments with one of my friends here that
- 12:49loves Jesus, it just made me... want more. It
- 12:53made me thirst for more. I realized how encouraging
- 12:56it was to my walk, how uplifting it was, how
- 12:59I felt a little less alone by each conversation
- 13:01or interaction that occurred in those moments.
- 13:05But they were so far and few between, and I realized
- 13:08my spirit needed it more. I had to intentionally
- 13:11cultivate the friendships I was looking for in
- 13:13Christ. I was lucky enough to have my core slash
- 13:16blueprint to work from, but not all of us come
- 13:19from the same space or place in our walk. Google
- 13:22says a friend is generally defined as a person
- 13:25you know well, like, and trust. They are someone
- 13:28you feel comfortable and enjoy spending time
- 13:30with, often developing a close and informal relationship
- 13:34characterized by mutual trust and intimacy. I
- 13:37think that's a pretty good definition. I would
- 13:39say most of my friends, actually a huge percentage
- 13:43of my friends or all of my friends, definitely
- 13:47fit that definition. I would say even some of
- 13:50my best friends fit that definition. But none
- 13:54of my holy friends. That definition isn't enough
- 13:57for them. The Bible says friendship is defined
- 14:01as a deep, loving commitment characterized by
- 14:03loyalty, self -sacrifice, and a willingness to
- 14:06speak truth when it's difficult. Now that I would
- 14:09say all my best friends hit. Every single one.
- 14:13And more. And my holy friendships, that aren't
- 14:17even my besties but still so deep and meaningful,
- 14:20hit all those spots too. Unfortunately, just
- 14:24like all of us, I've had friends not respect
- 14:26my boundaries, share my personal trauma without
- 14:29my consent, not speak words of encouragement
- 14:31or life into me. Made me want to stop talking
- 14:34about Jesus. Made me feel less than. Tell me
- 14:37they are a Christian but won't be praying over
- 14:39me, and shut me down when I try to talk about
- 14:42my hurt because it made them uncomfortable. God
- 14:45has had one way or another to take these people
- 14:48out of my life over time, long periods of time,
- 14:51but after a while, they were gone nonetheless.
- 14:54Every friendship doesn't have to be a holy friendship.
- 14:57There are friendships for different seasons and
- 14:59spaces in life. Some friends are in your life
- 15:01because of circumstances like work or school.
- 15:04Some are here to help us grow. Some are here
- 15:07to challenge us or change the way we think. Some
- 15:10friends are brought in to fill a space as bad
- 15:12as it sounds until you find new friends. Some
- 15:15are here to help us get through something and
- 15:17some are here to love you and help heal you.
- 15:20Friendships can be easy. They can be just going
- 15:23out together to have fun or workout buddy or
- 15:26maybe you share a hobby. Not all friendships
- 15:28have to be deep. Not all friendships have to
- 15:31be holy friendships. Like me, you can in fact
- 15:35have a bestie that encourages your walk with
- 15:37Jesus and a bestie that's an atheist and love
- 15:40them both equally. They both can help you grow
- 15:42in different ways, and they can both know your
- 15:45heart to a deep level. Now, there are definitely
- 15:48some iconic friendships in the Bible. Some are
- 15:51more obvious, like David and Jonathan, and I
- 15:54think it's one of the best known friendships
- 15:55in the Bible. Because after David had accomplished
- 15:58what he did with Goliath, Jonathan recognized
- 16:01David's potential. When Jonathan offered his
- 16:04robe, armor, sword, bow, and belt to young David,
- 16:08he was making a symbolic gesture of not only
- 16:11welcoming David into the family, but also placing
- 16:14him ahead of Jonathan in the succession to the
- 16:16throne. Jonathan saw David and his potential
- 16:20and he was willing to put David's success before
- 16:22himself. And then we have some friendships like
- 16:25Job and his friends that our brains don't always
- 16:27jump to when we think about friendships, but
- 16:29it's definitely equally important. Because when
- 16:32Joe faced his toughest times, his friends were
- 16:34immediately there for him. His friends sat with
- 16:38him. When he was sitting in silence, they sat
- 16:40with him and didn't speak. When he mourned, they
- 16:42mourned, and they were patient and let him do
- 16:44the talking. They felt his pain, but also allowed
- 16:47him to feel it without putting their burdens
- 16:49on him at the same time. They also corrected
- 16:53him, reminding him of the truth of God that they
- 16:55knew. But this is also the perfect reminder that
- 16:58not even your closest friends can know you and
- 17:02how well you know God. But being a friend, like
- 17:05Job's, is sometimes just being there as a comfort.
- 17:08Some other friendships we could glance over would
- 17:10be, you know, that one guy that got lowered by
- 17:12his friends to the roof. We have Paul and Timothy,
- 17:16Paul and Barnabas, Jesus and John, you know,
- 17:19the one that Jesus loved. I mean, honestly, imagine
- 17:23if your best friends are in a huge group and
- 17:26you have that one that goes around town announcing
- 17:28himself or themselves as a one that you love.
- 17:32Like for me, example, I have some really good,
- 17:34good friends and I even have some best friends
- 17:36from different circles. And if one of them was
- 17:39just going around Wilmington being like, I'm
- 17:41the one that Hannah, Hannah Liz loves, I think
- 17:45actually people would fight and yeah, I think
- 17:48people would throw hands because that would be
- 17:50such a crazy thing to do. But you know John had
- 17:53to be really secure in his friendship with Jesus
- 17:55to do that. And then of course, we even have
- 17:58Jesus and Martha. And they had such a beautiful
- 18:01friendship too. All these friendships, you could
- 18:03classify as holy friendships. And they all have
- 18:06something that comes with it. These friendships
- 18:08produce fruit. I know, I know. Such a Christian
- 18:11-y thing to say. But we're talking about holy
- 18:14friendships here. So let's talk about what the
- 18:16outcome of a holy friendship should look like.
- 18:19First, let's go over what we mean by fruit. Fruit
- 18:22can mean a few different things. One, spiritual
- 18:25character, so like the fruit of the spirits,
- 18:27peace, joy, love, self -control, etc. Two, outcomes
- 18:32of action, aka actions speak louder than words.
- 18:36And three, bearing fruit, which means to bring
- 18:39people to Jesus. If you're like me, you might
- 18:42be more of a visual learner, so picture this.
- 18:45You're a tiny little seed, and Farmer God takes
- 18:48you to a beautiful green grassy field. And there's
- 18:50a stream by the bluest, clearest water you've
- 18:53ever seen. And he plants you near that stream.
- 18:56And as you grow, you get roots. And your roots
- 19:00are part of the core of who you are. It's your
- 19:02foundation. It's where you get strengthened.
- 19:04It's where you grow in deeper. So your roots
- 19:06are in the richest soil there ever was. But your
- 19:09roots need water to help you grow. So your roots
- 19:12are working their way. through that soil and
- 19:15you encounter rocks they aren't fully blocking
- 19:17your path to the stream and a little moisture
- 19:19can get through to your roots so you can grow
- 19:22a little bit and be happy these rocks aren't
- 19:25a huge inconvenience you could go around them
- 19:27you could go through them you could go above
- 19:29them and you can go under them but they're there
- 19:31nonetheless they're not bad but they're not good
- 19:35could they stunt you from growing anymore if
- 19:37you don't try and push through absolutely But
- 19:39if you don't push through, you could end up staying
- 19:41the same size, because right now, you're just
- 19:44sprouting. You're not really getting any bigger.
- 19:46You're kind of the size of a sapling, and you
- 19:48have branches, but that's it. So you get to choose.
- 19:51You can stay the size of a sapling, and eventually
- 19:53weather away when the summer sun comes or a strong
- 19:56wind blows, or you can work around those rocks
- 19:58and keep going. Your roots decide to keep going.
- 20:01They get around those rocks. They dig deeper
- 20:03into the earth and closer to the stream. And
- 20:05as you get deeper and closer to the stream, you
- 20:07get bigger. Your branches get bigger and you
- 20:10spurt leaves. This is good. This is enough for
- 20:13you. Now, when the summer sun comes, you'll be
- 20:16okay. And if a strong wind comes through, you'll
- 20:19probably withstand it, and you'll get bigger
- 20:21slowly over time. Your roots might not be deep
- 20:25enough to hold the weight when that time comes
- 20:27from the size that you'll be one day, but it's
- 20:29good enough for now. The soil is good, and you
- 20:32have enough moisture around at the moment. One
- 20:35day, the farmer comes and checks on you and sees
- 20:37that you've gotten bigger. You have branches
- 20:39now and leaves, but you're a fruit tree and you
- 20:41haven't blossomed yet. Now as the tree, you naturally
- 20:45decide to make it to that beautiful stream. Your
- 20:47roots keep going. Your roots reach that stream
- 20:50and you get even bigger. The branches get bigger.
- 20:52You blossom. You produce fruit for that farmer.
- 20:56You have shade for that green grass around in
- 20:59that dry summer sun and shelter for the animals
- 21:02when that strong wind hits. The stream of water
- 21:05is feeding you, encouraging you to grow, helping
- 21:07you produce that fruit. That rich soil you've
- 21:10been growing in, getting deeper into, has been
- 21:12doing the same, helping keep you steady in the
- 21:15strong winds and storms that might come. The
- 21:18stream and rich soil are your holy friendships.
- 21:21Your fruit isn't just the fruit of your branches
- 21:22that will feed those around you. It's the shade
- 21:25you produce, the shelter you provide, the comfort
- 21:27you can give. The other little seeds getting
- 21:30planted by the farmer can see how you've grown
- 21:32and what you give back to the farmer and all
- 21:35that is his around you. Our holy friendship fruit
- 21:38is reminding each other the goodness of God.
- 21:41It's holding each other accountable. It's speaking
- 21:43truth and life into each other's lives. It's
- 21:46actively praying over each other. It's getting
- 21:48to know Jesus better by being around that friend.
- 21:51It's being bolder in Christ when with each other.
- 21:55It's crying together and laughing together. It's
- 21:57creating a safe space to talk about our sins,
- 22:00struggles, or fears. It's seeing each other's
- 22:03actions and not only being encouraged by it,
- 22:05but thinking it's cool and wanting to implement
- 22:07it in yourself too. Last year, my best friend
- 22:10Serena decided to get baptized. She was dedicated
- 22:13as a baby, but has grown so much in her relationship
- 22:17with Jesus over the last few years. She wanted
- 22:19to get baptized to kind of make it her own with
- 22:22him. She called me and told me, all of this,
- 22:25and how nervous she was of what her family or
- 22:28old church family would think, but that she was
- 22:30so excited to take this step. She expressed that
- 22:33she wished I could be there, but knew it was
- 22:35last minute and that I probably wouldn't be able
- 22:37to make it because she lives in South Florida
- 22:40and I live in North Carolina. Well, I did it.
- 22:44I got off of work. I had my manager block off
- 22:46my schedule booked my flight, called her and
- 22:49told her I'd be there and wouldn't miss seeing
- 22:51my best friend get baptized for anything in this
- 22:54world. I got in my car, drove to Raleigh because
- 22:57that was the only one who had direct flights,
- 22:59hopped on my flight to South Florida, landed,
- 23:02and she picked me up. We went straight to her
- 23:04baptism on the beach. I cried, took pictures
- 23:07and videos, and then we went to dinner. Now,
- 23:10Serena's been living in Florida for a couple
- 23:12of years. But I haven't gotten the chance to
- 23:14visit her, because we do so much traveling together,
- 23:17there wasn't really a reason for me to go until
- 23:19now. So at dinner, I didn't know any of her friends.
- 23:22I mean, I knew about them probably more than
- 23:24they would want me to know, but I didn't personally
- 23:27know them. Plus, I'm more of an introvert anyways.
- 23:29That just happens to function as an extrovert,
- 23:32and she is the full extrovert in our friendship.
- 23:35So in true introvert fashion, I stopped there,
- 23:38I listened, said a few things here and there
- 23:40at dinner, but mostly just took it all in. At
- 23:43one point in dinner, they were all talking about
- 23:45something. What? I can't tell you because I don't
- 23:48remember and it wasn't important to me or my
- 23:50life. But it's what Serena said that I took note
- 23:52of. Everyone was talking, clearly passionate
- 23:55about the conversation at hand and enjoying it.
- 23:58But out of nowhere Serena said, wait, wait, wait,
- 24:00you guys, hold on. This is hitting the line of
- 24:03gossip and about to go right over it. I know
- 24:05I started this conversation, but let's stop now
- 24:08and change the subject. My brain stopped for
- 24:11a minute. I was so impressed. I sat there as
- 24:14they all didn't miss a beat and changed the subject.
- 24:17I sat there wondering if I could say that to
- 24:19my friends at dinner with a group of 10 plus
- 24:21people and not feel embarrassed. Would I be bold
- 24:25enough to do that, strong enough to call it what
- 24:27it is, to admit that even though I started the
- 24:29conversation and participated in it, that it
- 24:31was wrong and that we needed to change it? I
- 24:35instantly loved that about her, took note of
- 24:37it, and realized I needed to be more active in
- 24:40calling myself out on sins like that too. I learned
- 24:43from her in that moment, and I grew through Jesus
- 24:45using her in that moment. The fruit in that for
- 24:48me was that I was made aware, I was inspired,
- 24:50and I was encouraged. Do I still gossip? I'd
- 24:53love to say no, but I do catch myself in it.
- 24:56I call myself out on it to whoever I'm speaking
- 24:59with, and then we change the subject. I hope
- 25:01the fruit from that story for Serena was to know
- 25:03that I will drop what I'm doing and be there
- 25:05for her. I'll put her wellbeing and her goals
- 25:08before myself when it comes to her walk with
- 25:10the Lord. That I'll be her encourager because
- 25:13even though she had a relationship with Jesus
- 25:14forever, her deepening and growing it is always
- 25:19my priority. I will show up for her and walk
- 25:21with her in it. Another instance of a holy friendship
- 25:24was with my friend Hannah. We had gone out for
- 25:27New Year's Eve and were recovering the next morning
- 25:30on the beach with the hot dog. Nothing like a
- 25:329am hot dog after a night out. I'd never done
- 25:35it before, but now I'm kind of obsessed. As we
- 25:38sat on the beach with our feet in the sand, listening
- 25:40to the waves crash, and watching non -hungover
- 25:43people walk by, we decided to write down our
- 25:462024 goals. And two of my goals was one, to start
- 25:50a Bible study, and two, to go to therapy. That
- 25:53next Sunday, we were visiting our new church
- 25:55and the guest pastor on stage said, some of you
- 25:58are being told by the spirit to go to therapy
- 26:00and you're putting it off. Instantly, Hannah
- 26:02G elbowed me on the side. And then he had the
- 26:05audacity to say directly after that, and some
- 26:08of you are being called to start a small group
- 26:10or a Bible study and are nervous to answer that
- 26:12call. Well, Hannah G elbowed me on the side again,
- 26:16two for two. Well, the next week we had a name
- 26:19picked out, a day, and a time for our Bible study
- 26:21group. And I had an appointment with a therapist.
- 26:25Our Bible study group has been the biggest blessing.
- 26:28We went from four of us on a good night meeting
- 26:30to 14 of us. We have walked through trials together,
- 26:33made confessions, cried together and laughed
- 26:35uncontrollably. We have authentic, real and raw
- 26:38conversations and are present to showing up as
- 26:41we are and not who we want people to see us to
- 26:44be. So many of those girls have become my holy
- 26:46friendship. They get me so excited for Jesus'
- 26:49love and what He's doing in our lives and the
- 26:51lives around us. Holy friendships should do that.
- 26:55They should get you excited, help deepen your
- 26:57love and your faith in Jesus, allow you to get
- 26:59to know your Heavenly Father better. They should
- 27:02feel safe. You should be able to trust them to
- 27:04speak truth into your life and to help you grow
- 27:06and inspire you to grow in a Christ -like manner
- 27:08and closer to Jesus. They shouldn't make you
- 27:11feel insecure, like you have to wear a Christian
- 27:13mask around them. They shouldn't make you feel
- 27:15like you have to know what to say or how to act.
- 27:17You shouldn't feel like there's an unspoken competition
- 27:19between you. You shouldn't have to guard your
- 27:21secrets and not talk about the sins you're struggling
- 27:24with. If any of your friendships hit on more
- 27:26than one thing from the list of shinets, you
- 27:28might need to talk to that friend. In fact, you
- 27:31definitely need to talk to that friend and 100
- 27:33% pray over that friendship if you want to stay
- 27:36friends with them. And if you don't, then thank
- 27:39the Lord for free will because guess what, bestie?
- 27:41You don't have to stay friends with them. Holy
- 27:43friendships can't help but bear fruit. It's part
- 27:46of the friendship. If your friendship isn't bearing
- 27:48fruit, then it's just that, just a friendship.
- 27:51And that's okay because we need those too. I
- 27:54hope and pray that you have a holy friendship.
- 27:56And if you don't, then let's pray over it together
- 27:58now. Father, Abba, thank you so much for the
- 28:03people we have in our lives. Thank you for the
- 28:04friends that are there for a season and a reason
- 28:08that sometimes teach us a lesson. And I pray
- 28:11that whoever is listening to this, that if they
- 28:13don't have a friendship that draws them closer
- 28:15to you, encourages them, and makes them feel
- 28:18like they know you better and feel loved by you,
- 28:20that you would give that to them. If that's their
- 28:22heart desire, have them seek it Lord and have
- 28:25them find it. Have them get to know you on a
- 28:28deeper level. Know your love through the people
- 28:31that you place in their lives. And in Jesus name,
- 28:34amen. Alright y 'all, let's get connected on
- 28:46Instagram. You can reach me at Hannah Liz D or
- 28:49email me at livingfreepod at gmail .com. If you're
- 28:53loving the podcast, I'd be so honored if you
- 28:56go ahead and hit that subscribe button and leave
- 28:58me a review. And if you have feedback or a subject
- 29:01you'd like me to cover, please email me or DM
- 29:03me on Instagram. Again, thank you so much for
- 29:06listening. I hope you feel encouraged and lighter
- 29:08today. Bye y 'all! you