Home, Sweet Home – Making Our House Into a Home

I have a friend who is getting married this year (well, at this point, I’m not sure she’s still a friend…you’ll understand in a minute).  She and I have been very close for the last 9 years.  Over the last year, she and I have drifted apart partly because we both started serious relationships and partly because of some changes.  Over the last year, I’ve seen her almost appear to compromise her beliefs and morals.   Things she was opposed to over the past 9 years, suddenly were ok.  And I’m not talking about little things such as favorite colors or dislikes in food.  I’m talking about wholesale value changes.  I began to drift away from her not exactly intentionally.  I no longer knew how to approach her or how to relate to her.  Well, recently, I shared with her my feelings about the situation.  Somehow, I’ve gone from being a best friend to being someone who is unsupportive and unwelcome at the wedding.  So my question is why is it that being honest with someone is considered being unsupportive?  Wouldn’t you rather someone tell you the truth now than withhold bitterness and anger until it finally bursts?  Wouldn’t you rather someone tell you what issues they have with you rather than allow it to eat away at them and the friendship?  I guess I should have just kept my mouth closed and smiled and nodded.  But that’s not who I am and that’s not the way I work.  If your best friends can’t be honest with you, who can?  I really wish that she could understand how much her friendship means to me and how I really only want the best things for her!

In 1 Corinthians 5, Paul is talking about confronting your “brother about his sin.”  He said “You must not simply look the other way and hope it goes away on its own. Bring it out in the open and deal with it in the authority of Jesus our Master….Hold this man’s conduct up to public scrutiny. Let him defend it if he can! But if he can’t, then out with him! It will be totally devastating to him, of course, and embarrassing to you. But better devastation and embarrassment than damnation. You want him on his feet and forgiven before the Master on the Day of Judgment. “