Friendship is something we all long for. Yet real friendship is something that can be hard to find. In our world of social media, we can define friendship simply by learning about one’s life through an app on our phone.
When I think of friendship, I can’t help but think of the creation story and of God creating mankind to walk with and know him. That’s the truest picture of friendship.
Recently we hosted our annual International Friends Retreat. Unlike other events that we host, the sole focus of this event is to provide an opportunity for real friendships to evolve and go deeper.
We focus on helping both international and American students learn the culture and lens with which each see the world. We want to introduce international students to some distinctly Southern things while having a lot of fun in the activities that WorldSong Missions Place offers.
This year, the idea of real friendship was mentioned several times — not just from the stage but in many one-on-one conversations.
As followers of Christ, when we get to know and befriend others my hope is that Jesus Christ is evident in our lives. That’s the picture that we saw at the retreat this year.
Many international students expressed to their American friends that they wanted to take next steps in learning more about Jesus Whom their American friends had shared with them. These seeds that have been planted will be watered at the invitation of the international students.
Just today, I learned of an American student who has been invited to study the Bible weekly with her international friend after the retreat.
Will you join me in praying for these follow-up efforts? Will you join me in praying for these friendships that were formed to be real friendships that share the truest picture of friendship: God’s great love for us?
