I’ll never forget the first time I met my friend, Angela Craig. Obviously we share the same first name (Angela), but this isn’t where the similarities end.  (Bonus points if you get the Seinfeld reference.)  We were both wearing green sweaters, brown pants and boots.  Even our hair was the same color.  We were introduced in a room full of other women, and we immediately hit it off.  We had kindred hearts, it seemed.  We love ministry—specifically ministry to women; we are passionate about making a difference; and we are both voracious learners.

C.S. Lewis writes, “Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another: “What!  You too?  I thought I was the only one.”  This was definitely true for Angela and me.  Over the years we have found many more similarities—including the fact that we both wear the same bra and bra size.  (It’s a long story.  Just take my word for it.)  But honestly, what has made our friendship beautiful, and what has made our friendship strong, is our willingness to be an inconvenience for the other.

That is the inconvenient truth about friendship:  It’s not always convenient. 

If your friend calls when you are right in the middle of your to-do list, what is more important:?  Your friend.

If your friend asks for a favor, and you aren’t sure you even know how to help, what do you do?  You just go for it!

If your friend needs to hear the truth, but the truth might hurt?  You speak the truth in love.

If your friend wants to try something new and she is scared?  You are her ardent supporter.

When you meet your friend for coffee and she tells you she needs to stay the night (this actually happened):  You welcome her, no questions asked!

There are many times when friendship is simple and easy, but when it isn’t, “We are often one inconvenient act of compassion away from changing the entire perspective of our life,” writes Matthew Barnett. 

And that is the beauty of friendship.

“A friend loves at ALL times…” Proverbs 17:17 (NIV)

What are the results of being a friend who is willing to be inconvenienced for others?

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