Going PlacesSample

Imagine that you have a friend who just got dumped by her boyfriend. She's really upset about it and is spending all her time locked up in her bedroom, crying and numbing out on a Netflix binge. You keep calling and texting, trying to cheer her up, but it's just not working. You're trying to help her, but she won't seem to listen.

One of the hardest parts of being a friend is when it seems like our friends don't want our help. We can try to be as encouraging and compassionate as possible, but sometimes our friends seem to keep us at our arm's length. How do you help someone who doesn't want to be helped?

In his letter to the Early Church in Rome, Paul gave his readers a simple rule for how to be a good friend. If they're rejoicing, then rejoice with them. If they're sad, be sad with them.

If you have a friend who isn't cheering up when you try to encourage them, then think about Paul's words. Instead of trying to make them happy, sit with them in their sadness. Meet them in the midst of their heartbreak and pain. Sometimes, being a good friend means we don't try to fix our friend's problem, but instead we remind them that they don't have to process it alone.