⁶ When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. ⁷ Now, most people would not be willing to die for an upright person, though someone might perhaps be willing to die for a person who is especially good. ⁸ But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. ⁹ And since we have been made right in God’s sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God’s condemnation. ¹⁰ For since our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be saved through the life of his Son. ¹¹ So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God.

Romans 5:6-11

Dear God, friends with you? Really? I remember a friend of my dad’s who is gone now, but he used to establish mentoring relationships with young men, usually college-aged or older. He would say he wanted to be their friend. Frankly, we tried, but I didn’t care for him that much. I never felt like the friendship was equal or two-way. It didn’t fit my definition of friend.

So when I read Paul saying that we are friends of yours, I wonder how that can be. Is it this kind of friendship this man wanted? A friendship where one person has all of the power and the other is just lucky to be in their orbit? I mean, I’m good with an image of you as God and worshipping you. I’m good with an image of you as omnipotent and omnipresent. I’m good with an image of you as infallible. But it’s hard to think you could be my friend.

But then I think about the evidence you’ve shown me and the world that you want to be our friend. First, you reach out to us at all. That’s amazing in and of itself. Second, you literally sacrificed a part of yourself for us. Third, you took the time to be with us in the flesh to relate to us and teach us. You cared for us. You wept over us. You love us. Fourth, you are here with me now to just love me where I am. No conditions of where I will be in the future. Just love me where I am. Your influence will mold me as we go along, to be sure. If I am the average of the five “people” or I guess entities I spend the most time with, and I am spending time like this with you then I suppose the more I spend time with you the more I will be like you. But you are taking me where I am. It’s remarkable.

Father, it is amazing that I am a friend to God. I am a friend to you. Holy Spirit, you are sitting with me now as I type this. That’s amazing. You are comforting me. Teaching me. Inspiring me. Interested in me. I hope my love in return is enough. Sometimes, I feel like that is all I have to offer. But I offer it freely, willingly, and joyfully. Thank you, Father, Jesus, Holy Spirit–my Triune God.

I pray to the Father in Jesus and with the Holy Spirit,

Amen