WON'T YOU BE MY FRIEND (2 OF 5)
by Jeff Strite
Scripture: John 15:12-17
This content is part of a series.
Won't You Be My Friend (2 of 5)
Series: This Is Us
Jeff Strite
John 15:12-17
OPEN: (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qn9aSZ7uPXI - video clip from ''This Is Us'' of conversation between Katie and a woman she's helped. See Footnote)
APPLY: That clip came from a scene in a popular TV series called ''THIS IS US''. Katie (one of the main characters in the show) is helping a girl who has been hurt and is struggling with her self-image. What caught my attention in their conversation was this phrase:
''I can't believe it... I finally have a best friend.''
ILLUS: About 10 years ago there was a famous study called Alameda County Study overseen by a social scientist from Harvard. It tracked the lives of 7,000 people over nine years, and what they found was:
The most isolated people (people with few relationships in their lives) were 3 times more likely to die than those with strong relationships. In fact, people who had strong friendships but bad health habits (such as smoking, obesity, or alcohol) lived significantly longer than the people who had GREAT health habits... but isolated.
As one person commented on that study said ''In other words, it is better to eat Twinkies with good friends than to eat broccoli alone.'' [Ortberg, John (2008-04-01). ''Everybody's Normal Till You Get to Know Them'' (p. 33). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.]
The point is this... we need friends. We desperately need friends - people who are there for us and people who care for us. And God knows that. In fact, the very 1st problem God saw with His creation had to do with loneliness.
When God had created stars and the plants, and fish and the birds - every time He created something He'd say ''that's GOOD''. And when He created Adam, God declared: that's ''very good''. But then God after He created Adam... God said: ''It is NOT good that the man should be alone.'' (Genesis 2:18)
ILLUS: A study done about 12 years indicated a very sad truth. The American Sociological Review ...
Series: This Is Us
Jeff Strite
John 15:12-17
OPEN: (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qn9aSZ7uPXI - video clip from ''This Is Us'' of conversation between Katie and a woman she's helped. See Footnote)
APPLY: That clip came from a scene in a popular TV series called ''THIS IS US''. Katie (one of the main characters in the show) is helping a girl who has been hurt and is struggling with her self-image. What caught my attention in their conversation was this phrase:
''I can't believe it... I finally have a best friend.''
ILLUS: About 10 years ago there was a famous study called Alameda County Study overseen by a social scientist from Harvard. It tracked the lives of 7,000 people over nine years, and what they found was:
The most isolated people (people with few relationships in their lives) were 3 times more likely to die than those with strong relationships. In fact, people who had strong friendships but bad health habits (such as smoking, obesity, or alcohol) lived significantly longer than the people who had GREAT health habits... but isolated.
As one person commented on that study said ''In other words, it is better to eat Twinkies with good friends than to eat broccoli alone.'' [Ortberg, John (2008-04-01). ''Everybody's Normal Till You Get to Know Them'' (p. 33). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.]
The point is this... we need friends. We desperately need friends - people who are there for us and people who care for us. And God knows that. In fact, the very 1st problem God saw with His creation had to do with loneliness.
When God had created stars and the plants, and fish and the birds - every time He created something He'd say ''that's GOOD''. And when He created Adam, God declared: that's ''very good''. But then God after He created Adam... God said: ''It is NOT good that the man should be alone.'' (Genesis 2:18)
ILLUS: A study done about 12 years indicated a very sad truth. The American Sociological Review ...
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