September 2025
In James 2:23, James the brother of our Lord Jesus Christ said, “And the Scripture was fulfilled which said, ‘Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness,” and he was called the “Friend of God.”
Notice that James says that Abraham was called the “Friend of God.” In our lives we meet and come across a lot of people. It may be people we went to school with as children, people we have worked with on the job, or even people we have met on the street or right in Church. But the reality of friendship is this: if you really want to know someone, it’s of utmost importance that you spend time with that person.
The more time you spend with them, the better you get to know them. My wife and I have been married now for almost 40 years. I thought when I married her that I knew her. But to be honest, getting to really know her took time, time together! She became my best friend. When you spend time together, you will find out what they may like or what they may not like. You can find out some intimate details about a person just by spending time with them.
It’s no different with the Lord. A lot of times Christians have the idea that God is way off in outer space somewhere far away from us. They never take the time to realize that He’s as close as your next breath. Actually He is living right inside of your human spirit. By spending Intimate time with God, you will find out His likes and dislikes as well.
I gave my heart to the Lord on October 15, 1981, and I can tell you that over those past nearly 44 years, I can honestly say that my relationship with the Lord and increased, and I have grown to know Him more and more from that day until now. We have a relationship that I can say is even closer than a person could even have with an acquaintance or a spouse. That doesn’t mean you don’t love your friends or your spouse, but the Lord has become to be me not only my Father, my Savior, my Healer, my All in All, but my VERY BEST FRIEND!
“How can this be,” you might ask? Well the Bible tells us in Proverbs 18:24, “A man who has friends must show himself friendly, and there is a Friend who sticks closer than a brother.” That’s what I have in the Lord, I know Him better than I know my wife, my children or even friends and acquaintances that I may have. I have learned over the years that people may and will let you down, but the Lord has never let me down no matter what I may have been facing, and He can be the same for you as well.
As you begin to establish this relationship with the Lord, you will find that things you used to do or even enjoyed doing are no longer enjoyable. You will find that things the world finds they can’t live without have no control over you. The reason for this is because as you spend more time with the Lord, those things simply fall off of you, there seems to be that you have no more interest in them.
Once again in James 4:4, James says, “…know you not that the friendship of the world is in opposition with God (or against God)? Whoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.” I don’t about you, but I don’t want to be an enemy of God, my relationship with Him means more to me than anything on this planet.
As we grow, develop and establish a closer relationship with Lord, we find that the things we used to do become meaningless. As I get older my relationship with the Lord is the greatest relationship that I can have with anyone or anything. All you have to do is make a quality decision to spend more quality time with Him, and anyone can do it.
In closing, I want to encourage you to start this very moment in establishing a closer relationship with the Lord. Don’t make excuses. All you need is your Bible, your heart, and your voice. You don’t need some religious for of prayer, simply talk to Him the way you would talk to your friend. Remember, He is your Friend Who sticks closer than a brother. Yes I know there are books to read that will help, but the Greatest Book of all is the Bible! So, stay in the Word every day, make you daily confession, pray in the spirit for our nation, our leaders, and all who are in authority, pray for the peace of Jerusalem; and remember “God loves you; we love you and JESUS IS LORD!”
In the Service of Our King,
Darrell G. Harrelson