“As soon as he had finished speaking to Saul, the soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul. And Saul took him that day and would not let him return to his father’s house. Then Jonathan made a covenant with David, because he loved him as his own soul. And Jonathan stripped himself of the robe that was on him and gave it to David, and his armour, and even his sword and his bow and his belt. And David went out and was successful wherever Saul sent him, so that Saul set him over the men of war. And this was good in the sight of all the people and also in the sight of Saul’s servants.”
1 Samuel 18:1-5 (The Voice)
You may have heard of the story of Jonathan and Saul in the Bible. Jonathan, Saul’s son, was deeply affected when he saw David’s courageous act of bravely killing Goliath. They found that they had many things in common, such as bravery, strength, loyalty, trust, courage, and faith in God. They became best friends and Jonathan ended up giving David many of his most treasured possessions as an act of love (his robe, sword, bow, belt, and even his armour).
The only problem was that Saul, Jonathan’s father, started hating David after hearing the praise the people were throwing on him – “Saul has slain his thousands and David his ten thousands.” He sought to kill David from that day forward.
Jonathan often went so far as to put his own life in danger whilst trying to intervene on behalf of David, travelling to see him when he was in hiding from Saul, warning him when Saul was after him – even though he knew that David would be king instead of him.
David was also very loyal to Jonathan, protecting him when he could have seen Jonathan as a rival, and showing Jonathan great respect. In fact, the depth of his love was so great that when he found out that Saul and Jonathan had been killed, he composed a song called the “Song of the Bow” and ordered that all of the children of Judah be taught it.
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Relocation has been the most interesting experience for me. I’ve been able to observe the developments in my life with my adult brain and form interesting opinions, amongst other things. One of the things that I’ve been flawed by is the process of “friendship”.
Friend:
- A person with whom you are acquainted;
- An associate who provides cooperation or assistance;
- A person you know well and regard with affection and trust;
- A person who backs a team…
(via Wordset)
I grew up in Pietermaritzburg (a small town in Kwa-Zulu Natal) and there, I had people who knew my history, who cheered for me, who loved me, and who would correct me in love. We danced together, we laughed together, and we cried together. Their ages ranged from two to 80 years old. I knew the people that I could call when in crisis; I knew the people who I could call just to “chill”.
It was in about my second week of living in Cape Town (whilst serving at a new church) that I looked into the crowd from the stage and totally freaked out inside. I knew these people but they, in effect, knew nothing about me. I couldn’t hug someone and feel that they “knew me,” and I felt that I was at the age that developing yet another meaningful relationship with anyone was just too tiring; too much work.
It’s over a year later and I am so amazed at the lengths that Jesus went through to connect me with amazing people (if only I had the time to tell you all of the stories), who I’ve not really had all the history in the world with but who have touched my heart and have shown me more kindness than I feel that I deserve.
In many ways, good friendship is a supernatural thing. The Bible says that a “a good friend sticks closer than a brother,” (Proverbs 18:24) and there a tons of people who walk through life without that, constantly in the company of people who want the worst for them, who are constantly rivalling them, giving them the worst advice and are never there when they need them. Without good company, it’s very hard to achieve much, even if one has good intentions. More and more, I am seeing that without the backing of good people on my team, I have to work just that much harder!
If you’re someone who needs to be thankful today, I encourage you to walk through life with eyes open wide, ready to see miracles – and good “covenant” friends are just that. If you are one of those people who are desperately needing some healthy friendships, it’s okay to ask God for that specifically… but, first, make sure that you’ve accepted His gift of friendship to you! Find more about that by clicking the banner below.