In an age where physical space in friendships is often replaced with online interaction, building solid friendships can be difficult. And maintaining those relationships once established is even more so. In a recent episode of Start Small, Believe Big on the Charisma Podcast Network, host Billie Jauss talks about the characteristics of being a strong friend and the struggle she has experienced in both finding and being that kind of friend.
Jauss says, “I don’t know about you. I’ve had times when I choose the wrong people to be my friends. I don’t mean that they are horrible people, but they’re not people that feed life into my life.
“I was going through some stuff spiritually that I just felt like I was being judged by others and condemned by others for some things that they assumed about me and my life and my work in ministry,” Jauss says. “And I was really, really struggling.
“So I prayed about it. I thought about it. And when I was praying, the Lord put a dear friend on my heart.
“And so I started thinking about what is it that we need to be on the lookout for, to make these deep, godly friendships?” Jauss asks. “I’ve been so busy looking for deep friendships that I started to think maybe I had missed out on being a friend the way others needed me to.”
As Jauss looked to Scripture, God revealed to her the five characteristics of a godly friend. She asks, “How can you be the friend you need, to others? You’ve been that person that you need in your life, how can you step out and do it for them?”
To find out how you can embody the five characteristics of a godly friend, listen to the full podcast here. {eoa}
Jackie Bledsoe 
Charisma Media Staff 
