Relationship: Ouch! Friend – Milo Briscoe

Faithful are the wounds of a friend [who corrects out of love and concern]. Proverbs 27:6a AMP

This verse reminds me of a time when a friend brought a word of correction to me. I was surprised when he did it because we were “friends”.  I expected my friend to go along with my wrong.  Yup, I didn’t know the meaning of friend.

It’s amazing, after the initial response to myself, “how dare he”, I thought about what he shared.  I realized he cared enough about me, to tell me what I needed to hear, oppose to what I wanted to hear.  That moment had a positive effect on my life that I will never forget. We are still friends today and I value our friendship even more.

Although it may have been hard for my friend to share a word of correction with me, I learned that he valued our friendship more.  As the receiver of the word I had to get over myself and realize he was right and understand he was just being my friend.

It doesn’t always end that way, but friendship comes with the responsibility to try.  True friendship, like medicine, may not taste good, but it’s good for you in the long run.

Prayer: Father, Your Word says, “An open rebuke is better than hidden love”, Proverbs 27:5 NLT. Give us the strength to bring a word of correction, when needed, with grace and love. Also, the maturity to receive it when it’s us. 

Amen 



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