Think of all the people who have been in your life?
Who has hung in there with you for the long haul?
Some are with you when "things" are going well but fade when "things" turn bad.
Some are close when you live close but they disappear when you move away.
Some are your friend while it is useful for them but the friendship fades as they don't need you much any more.
After all the "fade outs", and moves who is left by your side? These are special people. They are truly friends. They choose to be with you (even if it is only Facebook from the other side of the world) despite your failures, mistakes and even successes. The wise one puts it this way. “A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.” Proverbs 17:17.
I find ministry in the church is also a good place to ask this question. Who is left?
Some shine brightly for a little time. They are the focus of excitement but just a few years later they are gone. There are the really clever ones who make a lot of sense with their strategy for change but after a while they are gone. If you have been around in churches for a few years you know what I am talking about.
Who is left? Who has given up or found it more convenient to (or even called to) move on. People may be gone for perfectly godly reasons. I am not questioning their motivations. I just have found it so sobering and encouraging to focus on the ones who stay for whole game and don't leave at half time.
Thank God for the ones who hang in there. They are here for you and your church. They may have been around so long that they blend into the background but don't let them. Praise them. Seek them. Allow God to use them. God has put them in your life for a reason. Love them. Above all, love them.
Reminds me of Paul's comment about Timothy, his long time partner in ministry. “I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, that I also may be cheered when I receive news about you. I have no-one else like him, who takes a genuine interest in your welfare. For everyone looks out for his own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. But you know that Timothy has proved himself, because as a son with his father he has served with me in the work of the gospel.”Philippians 2:19-22.
Reach out the ones who are left with you.
