photo #7860820

No Unfriending"I was recently informed, again, that I’ve been “unfriended.” Banished, I guess. Someone wanted to eliminate me from their life so “poof,” I’ve been sent to cyber prison, and it’s so easy to do. You ever wish you could unfriend some people in real life? Other than me, that is. Everyone has an obnoxious relative—or someone at work who’s decided they’re your BFF and they’re suffocating you—or a neighbor who pays too much attention to what’s going on at your house. There’s a name bouncing around in my head right now. I got to thinking and decided it’s a wonderful thing God doesn’t unfriend us. We give Him plenty of reasons to, but He’s gracious to forgive, and he’s longsuffering and merciful, so He keeps us on His list of friends. And expects to do the same. My old nature wants to unfriend lots of people, but my new nature won’t let me. Here’s why…”Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another. No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us” - 1 John 4:11-12. The Apostle John tells us that Jesus didn’t even unfriend Judas, but loved him to the end (13:1). So I guess that means He expects us to do the same with the unlovely people in our lives. In real life, for Christians, there is no such thing as unfriending anyone since we might be their only pathway to Jesus. And if we can get them to Jesus, it’s amazing to see what delightful people they turn out to be. Like Zacchaeus for example (read all about it in Luke 19).