What is a Friend?

They say that, Friends are like balloons, if you let them go, you can't get them back, So you to have tied your Friend like a balloon to your heart.

So that you will never lose your Friend. We all have different views about Friends or Friendship.  

One thing is for sure, that a Good Friend is essential to life, and so does healthy relationship with them.   Do you know that there are four kinds of friends? 

There are acquaintances, casual friendships, close friendship and intimate friendships. 

We all have acquaintances, those faces that we recognize and people we greet by just their name.  

An acquaintance  person is with whom you have only occasional contact, often it is only a single contact, such as someone you met while having a vacation or who went to your house to fix your washing machine or computer.  What might happen in this kind of Friend is to see if this stage will develop if you both have time to be 'real' Friends.

Casual friendships, It happen when you keep on contacting each other.  

A "casual friendship" is based on common interests or activities. 

A casual friend may be a person at work or someone you know at a club, at church, or on a sports team.  At this level you are free to ask some kinds of specific questions based on mutual interests. Your responsibility is to try to recognize how far the Lord has progressed in our friend's life.

Close friendships are developed through sharing of interests and spending time together in certain activities. Some people in your life will be "close friends".  A close friendship is based on mutual life goals and long-term interests.  You and your friend are beginning to see potential achievement in each other's life.  There is freedom to suggest mutual improvement projects, and your goal should be to be creative in helping your friend develop appropriate projects for spiritual advancement.

But intimate friendships are what everyone of us need.   These are friends that stay with us no matter what. They listen to us and are genuinely interested in what is best for us. They are true, thoughtful and aren't fake.  They always tell us the truth, even if it hurts us sometimes.  But that's okay because that means they want the best for us and they are indeed interested in our well-being.   

You will not have many intimate friends, and any intimate friendship is by its nature quite intense. Some married couples are intimate friends, others are not. 

An intimate friendship is based on open honesty, discretion, and a commitment to the development of each other's character and spiritual potential. There is the freedom to discern the basic causes of character deficiencies or sin patterns and to work together for solutions.

Speaking of an Intimate Friend. She is my example of a True Friend.  

I want you all to meet her and know that she is a Gift from God.  

Her name is Tiffany :) We are 10 years friends and counting! :)

My Intimate Friend

SIGNS OF A GOOD FRIENDSHIP

(these are also based on my own views of having a true friend)

1. Real and Honest

2. Loving with Respect

3. You are able to trust them

4. You both know how to comfort

5. There is a Loyalty

6. You get along after arguing

7. Supportive no matter what

8. A good listener

9. Encourage you to be a better person

10. Never puts you down and lifts you up

11. Makes time for you and care always

12. Helping each other in times of need

13. Does not envy

How about you? What do you think are the qualities of a Good Friendship? 

What kind of friends do you prefer to be with? Can you share me your own views of Friends?  Another sign of a True Friend or Good Friendship aside what you have read before, is for me, A True Friend doesn't know your exact address but memorized the way/route to your house. Funny but yes it is 100 percent true.  Well, A True Friend who can know both is acceptable. 

To have time with you and to make happy moments together.     

Who are your friends? acquaintances, or intimate friend?  

In fact, Sometimes even our friends may let us down, but there is one thing that is sure--- Jesus wants to be your friend. When you accept his friendship you will never be disappointed. :D

Share me your stories and comment below. :)

Also read my views and share your own views about Love.

The Result of Curiosity

I want to share you a story: Karla was a curious girl. 

Not that long ago she was excited about life. So many choices. 

Why not try them all and then decide? 

She wasn't a kid anymore, but still there was plenty of time left. 

After all, it was her life, wasn't it? And she would choose what would right or wrong for her. She would experiment. Get new friends.

 Do things she was curious about but had never tried before. 

And so she did. It was fun and even more exciting than she had imagined. 

Even the “cover ups” in front of her family and her old friends provided a thrill. 

Then one night, she went to a party where she did things she couldn't quite remember. Everything was a blur and out of control. 

The last thing she recalled was holding on to a wall and sinking into a corner. 

The next morning, Karla found herself on a strange mattress, her rumpled clothes saturated with the smell of smoke and beer from last night’s party. 

Her head hurt and she felt so powerless, alone and lost. 

It wasn't supposed to be like this and it definitely wasn't fun anymore. But it had been her choice. 

She had no one else to blame. Her choices had left her without friends. She never know herself anymore.

Jesus met a "Karla" by the well of Samaria in the bible. 

Early morning trips to the community well was where women "downloaded" the latest new news and laughed with friends. 

But this woman came all alone in the middle of the day. 

Her choices had left her without friends and worse, one failed marriage after another. Then Jesus showed up and who could have imagined what happened next?

Read this bible verse about The woman at the well: John 4: 2-41

New International Version (NIV)Jesus Talks With a Samaritan Woman. Now Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard that he was gaining and baptizing more disciples than John—

2 although in fact it was not Jesus who baptized, but his disciples.

3 So he left. Judea and went back once more to Galilee.4 Now he had to go through Samaria.

5 So he came to a town in Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of ground Jacob had given to his son Joseph.

6 Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about noon.

7 When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her,“Will you give me a drink?” 8 (His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.)

9 The Samaritan woman said to him, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.[a ])

10 Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.”

11 “Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water?

12 Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his livestock?”

13 Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again,

14 but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst.Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

15 The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.”

16 He told her, “Go, call your husband and come back.”

17 “I have no husband,” she replied. Jesus said to her, “You are right when you say you have no husband.

18 The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have just said is quite true.”

19 “Sir,” the woman said, “I can see that you are a prophet.

20 Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem.”

21 “Woman,” Jesus replied, “believe me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.

22 You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews.

23 Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.

24 God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”

25 The woman said, “I know that Messiah” (called Christ) “is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.”

26 Then Jesus declared, “I, the one speaking to you—I am he.”The Disciples Rejoin Jesus

27 Just then his disciples returned and were surprised to find him talking with a woman. But no one asked, “What do you want?” or “Why are you talking with her?”

28 Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people,

29 “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Messiah?”

30 They came out of the town and made their way toward him.

31 Meanwhile his disciples urged him, “Rabbi, eat something.”

32 But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about.”

33 Then his disciples said to each other, “Could someone have brought him food?”

34 “My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.

35 Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest.

36 Even now the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together.

37 Thus the saying ‘One sows and another reaps’ is true.

38 I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.” Many Samaritans Believe

39 Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I ever did.”

40 So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days.

41 And because of his words many more became believers.

42 They said to the woman, “We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world.”

Being Curious is not really dangerous just as it is. 

It is sometimes inevitable for some of the things we do, can be dangerous. 

Because basically curiosity is just human nature. It is something what people possess. 

It is a strong longing or desire to experience, to know or to learn something. 

Curiosity is inquisitive things that is interesting because it could be unusual. 

Our mind is active and likes to wander always.  But when others are curious about the things even they know it's wrong, that's dangerous and bad things can happen. 

The example above about someone who is curious what its like to be drunk like in the Story i had share with you.  So you must be careful of your Decisions especially when you have a big curiosity. Use your curiosity in a positive manner and in a right way.  

Always think the consequences that might happen if you do such things. 

Because you may regret something in the end that you wish you never done before. Sometimes, Curiosity brings negative results but there are also positive results that help us bring the best of us.

When you get to a negative result of your Curiosity and you don't know what to do in life, when you feel like You are alone in this world, that nothing saves you during hard times. No! You are very wrong. 

Read this blog post about Change and Good Decisions of Life. 

10 ways to know If It's Real Love

We often ask other views about love.

One of the most Question we ask is: How do you know if it's Real Love?  

Whenever your heart beating fast every time his presence is near you, and going faster when he come near to you and maybe you feel nervous when you know he's only there doing nothing to you.

In most situation, It will pop up to your mind that he is the one for you, "the real one" for you. BUT the question is how we'll know if it's LOVE?

In LOVE,You will sometimes be confused if it's Love or Just INFATUATION.

These two feelings differ in their conditions and facts about love.

What is INFATUATION? Infatuation is when you think of a person like you are falling in love with him or her, and you are so interested in that person but that feeling is for a short period of time.

Thinking you are in love but the truth is, it is just a lust.  There is an "attraction" but it is only "sexual attraction".  That's why for other people, it's sucks because at the end, they will find out that they are completely wrong about what they feel, that love they thought for real suddenly disappear.

That infatuation stage feels like you can't wait to be with someone.

You can't wait, it means you maybe being impatient.  

Perhaps, It could be called a romantic and intense kind of love.

But i will tell you again that Infatuation, is for a short period of time only.

How about LOVE? What is LOVE?   

Love is when the one you love's happiness is more important than your own happiness.

Love is a decision to commit yourself to someone and to work your relationship even there are tall walls awaits between the both of you and conflicts, you're going to continue loving,  instead of quitting.

It's attraction and Chemistry is in a longer period of time.  

10 ways to know If It's Real Love

10. Love Is not Selfish

9. Do Believe about the best about others around him.

8. Does not "keep score" of the faults of others

7. Do not put and tear down others.

6. Is not conceited, isn't self-centered and always perseveres.

5. Is patient with others, even when they are irritating

4. Is not happy when someone else gets hurt

3. Helps out others, even if it's inconvenient.

2. Celebrates the successes of others and happy

1. Never ever give up!

Others say that love is the key to life, that love is the fuel of life and without it, life would be dreary and dull.  Some believe that love is the most powerful force in the world.  But Whatever it is, our capacity to be able to love is limitless.  It's a special gift from God that must be shared to others.

There are thousand and one ways of expressing our love, concern, care and compassion for others, from a simple warm greeting of love, hugs, to sacrificing one's life for others.

Everyday, we should share our love for others and spread good cheer not just during special occasions.

Not also just to members of your family and friends but to others whenever that there is an opportunity or time to share love that comes our way. It is not something that is scheduled and screened.  It comes from within us spontaneously.

Love is more than the mechanical act of giving and sharing. It is the human concern and empathy that makes the act of giving meaningful. In other words, you cannot give without loving, but you cannot love without giving.

When all relationships, political conflicts, religious strife and other kinds of turmoil, many things fail, try solving the problem by applying the love prescription.  Love never fails.

Let’s be concerned beyond personal needs and share our blessings with other people. Because this is what life is all about by putting the love in to action. 

Radical Love (Unconditional love of Jesus)

Think about it: Jesus took every opportunity to let people know what God was really like. While some opened their hearts to know God more, others were angered by what they heard. Sometimes Jesus teaching could be pretty radical. Like the time he told his crowd of followers, "Love your enemies and pray for anyone who mistreats you. Then you will be acting like your Father in heaven."