Uncomplicated Friendship [It's Complicated] — Pastor Jason Burns

Do you have friends in your life who tell you the truth even when it hurts? Look look at what scripture. Again, Solomon says it like this about the truth. He says an open rebuke is better than a hidden love. Wounds from a sincere friend are better than many kisses from an enemy. He's saying that it's better to get an open rebuke, which means to be told the truth from someone who loves you. It's so much better to hear it from someone who loves you and who wants the best for you. Why? Because they're always gonna be looking out for what's best for for you. [00:28:26] (30 seconds)  #RealFriendsTellTruth

But if I could just be honest, I know that sounds right and it sounds good, but statistically according to everything I can find right now, so many of us are lonely. Like we know we were created for friends, but but we're lonely. And maybe when you were in middle school or high school, it seemed easy. You went to college and friendship was easy and then then you became an adult. Then you moved to a new city and the friendships are just hard and they're awkward and they're and they're challenging. [00:06:05] (33 seconds)  #AdultFriendshipStruggle

So here's my question. As you audit your life, do you have friends that draw out of you the better, the greatness that's in you? Secondly, do you have friends that can give you spiritual strength when you find yourself this courage? And finally, do you have anyone in your life who tells you the truth? If you don't, let me say this to you. God intended you for it. Like we were made for relationship with God. God wants all of that from you. That's his desire for you, and that's the best relationship. But it's an incomplete relationship without relationships here. [00:29:31] (35 seconds)  #FriendsForGrowth

Your and my soul. We were created to be connected not just to God, but to God, but also to each other. Literally, in Genesis chapter one and two, God creates the world with his voice. He spins it in to orbit, and he creates everything we can see. And as God creates, it's interesting because there's a rhythm and a cadence to God's creation. God creates and he says it's good. He creates and he says it's good. He creates and he says it's good. Then he gets to day six and he creates man and he says it's not good. It's not good that man it's not an issue with man. He says it's not good for man to be alone. [00:04:16] (33 seconds)  #NotMadeToBeAlone

What's happening is people are starting to realize that if I wanna know my purpose in life, I need to come back to the one who created me in the first place who's the only one who can give me my sense of purpose. So there's people that live with a a sense of spiritual poverty, but then there's a third one. And this is the one that in my opinion affects more Americans than anything. It's a relational poverty. What's funny is we live in a time when it's easier to be connected to everybody than it's ever been in the history of the world. [00:11:19] (27 seconds)  #HealRelationalPoverty