Devotional for Sunday, October 1, 2017
“The Sweetness of a Friend’s Counsel”
by Dona Hake
Proverbs 27:17 (The Voice)
” In the same way that iron sharpens iron,
” In the same way that iron sharpens iron,
a person sharpens the character
of his friend.”
of his friend.”
Oh how we need to value the sweet fellowship of our friends in Christ. Today I want us to meditate of being a friend that offers sweet counsel and receiving sweet counsel from the Word of God. First of all in any relationship whether it be family or friend we need to be loyal to the truth, and live uncompromisingly according to His precepts that He has laid out in His Word for us. I love the scripture from Proverbs 27:17, and I love the challenge it brings. I am sure everyone reading this has a friend or maybe you have many friends. A true friend will keep their eye on you, and they will come to know your heart in a special way. They will be able to observe by a mere, slight change on your face that something is troubling you. In the event you fail or make a mistake, a true friend will never leave you. A true friendship withstands any hardship, and will continue to grow in the midst of any trial. In fact we will see that the trials will actually make us stronger, if we handle them in God’s wisdom and His ways. An individual that loves and cherishes their friend dearly will also desire to share in the exchange of their strengths. A true friendship never competes but will thrive and grow stronger with time.
May we be ever mindful to be grateful to our Lord for the faithful friends that He has put in our lives. Thank God for those friends that have not walked away from us when they saw our faults and made the choice to love us and pray for us. We should be so thankful for those friends that love us enough to speak God’s Word even when we do not want to hear it. Many times our mind and emotions may not want to hear the truth but our hearts should be rejoicing at the voice of godly counsel in our time of weakness and need. We must value it, and allow it to minister to us that we can be sharpened by it both in character and in countenance.
Proverbs 27:9
“Ointment and perfume rejoice the heart:
“Ointment and perfume rejoice the heart:
so doth the sweetness of a man’s
friend by hearty counsel.”
friend by hearty counsel.”
Today I encourage your heart to seek Him, and ask Him to help you be the best friend you can be to those that He has divinely placed in your life. I pray that you will recognize the God given strengths in your friends . As iron sharpens iron, let us be willing to be used to sharpen as well as be sharpened!