Excellence is key to any area of life. Whatever you do, do it with excellence. Do it as unto you would unto God.

And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, ~ Colossians 3:23

Does this not also pertain to our friendships? Are our friends not those people God has entrusted us with in our life? Is a friendship not "work"? I believe so! Every friendship worth having requires work. In fact, anything worthwhile in life requires work.  And so do our friendships.

If you don’t just want mediocre friendships, you’ll need to work on it "excellently". What does this mean?  Excellence is quality. 

Quality over quanity. Having many friends may make you popular. You may think this makes you happy. Having many people like you may boost your ego or self esteem for a little while. But it is the quality of your friendships that will fulfill your need for connection.

♦Do your friends know you?  I mean, do they really know and understand you? Have you given them the opportunity to know what you like, what you believe, how you make decisions, what your insecurities are, how your family life has shaped you? And do you know these things about your friends?  The more you know and understand these things about each other the more you can be of help to each other.

♦Are you generous with your friends? Do you give them time? Do you pay for coffees/dinners? Do you give them presents on special occasions, or even just because?  Do you surprise them with something you know they like?  Luke 12:34 says "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."  If you place importance on your friendships, if you want your friendships to be excellent, let them know you treasure them by being generous.  Generosity opens people’s hearts towards you and brings a certain loyalty into the relationship, and is certainly a characteristic of excellence.

♦Is your attitude and character towards your friend excellent?  Do you believe the best of your friend? Do they have the benefit of the doubt? Do you trust them? Do you want the best for them?  John 15:13 says "Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends."  Laying down your life for a friend can be translated into going out of your way for your friends,  speaking well of your friends, refusing to gossip, changing your schedule to help in time of need,  being there when they are lonely or going through a hard time, and so on.

Have an Excellent Day with your friends!

Tagged as: characteristics, friendship, how to be a good friend, true friendship

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