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How good and pleasant it is
when God’s people live together in unity!
It is like precious oil poured on the head,
running down on the beard,
running down on Aaron’s beard,
down on the collar of his robe.
It is as if the dew of Hermon
were falling on Mount Zion.
For there the Lord bestows his blessing,
even life forevermore.
Psalm 133 NIV
This short psalm is from a collection called the Psalms of Ascent (Psalms 12-134). Travelers would sing these songs as they journeyed to worship together in Jerusalem. Traveling and worshipping God together is like the anointing oil (sign of blessing) flowing down the priest’s beard or a heavy dew that replenishes the ground. Traveling with other believers is a blessing.
1. Traveling with friends is fun!
One summer evening we met at a restaurant to celebrate and remember a choir trip to Washington D.C.
“Wait, how have I not heard this story before?” a friend asked. “You met on a blind date on April Fool’s Day?”
My husband and I laughed and told the story. Then, our friend described a double date with his roommate, but his roommate was dating his future wife! Luckily, both roommates agreed they wanted to date the other one!
Another friend shared how he ignored his future wife on their first date. All of us, married between 28 and 33 years, laughed until our sides hurt. Traveling with friends makes our journey much more fun!
2. Traveling with friends strengthens you in hard times.
Another blessing of traveling with friends is the solace they provide during hard times. This night of shared memories came at a particularly needed time for me. Exhausted, I had been driving several hours back and forth to take care of my mom battling stage 4 breast cancer. Funny dating stories provided an oasis between the caregiving.
But this isn’t the first trial our friends and I have faced as we traveled through life together. We have walked through many difficult circumstances, both giving casserole dishes and receiving them over the years. Together, we’ve wept and prayed over children, jobs and health issues.
3. Traveling with friends strengthens you spiritually.
Another blessing entails having a common purpose. We’ve served together in Honduras, practiced hours for Christmas programs, taught elementary children at VBS, served on church committees, etc. These experiences have strengthened our friendship and our faith.
Eternal Perspective
The unity of shared belief in the trinitarian God gives us blessings both in this life and in the life to come. Though I mostly refer to God as Father in this blog, he is actually the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. I spent an entire seminary class exploring the concept of the Trinity:
“One true God eternally exists as three persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit —one in nature, equal in glory, and distinct in relations.”
Scott Horrell from unpublished class notes for ST 102 (Dallas
Theological Seminary, Fall Semester, 2019),17.
This concept is a mystery I still do not completely comprehend. However, I do know that God’s nature is relational. He models healthy relationships for us.
As human beings, we won’t do friendships perfectly, but that is a subject I will save for a future blog. Our faith does provide reassurance that our friendships will not end when our life is over. At the end of our journeys, we will worship God together in heaven just as we did on earth. So I hope, as you travel with the Father, that you will bring some friends along with you.
Lord,
Thank you for the gift of friendship. Thank you for the blessings our friendships provide as we travel on the roads you have prepared for us. May we help each other grow closer to you as we journey together.
Amen