By Faith Enterprises

The Intimate Friendship of Jesus

Tip! He didn't say we would see the manifestation of our prayers immediately. We need to give God time to work things out, continue in our faith, and not doubt, 'For a man who wavers is like a wave of the sea, driven with the wind and tossed.

WHEN is it that Jesus is near to us; is it only when all is well and nothing seems difficult? What about when He seems absent, is that when all is hard and difficult? When Jesus does not seem to speak to our hearts, all the other comforts is empty, but if He says only a word, it brings great relief in us.

Isaiah 15:6 "For the waters of Nimrim shall be desolate: for the hay is withered away, the grass faileth, there is no green thing".

Was it not Mary Magdalen who got up at once from her weeping when Martha said to her: "The Master is come, and calls for you"? Happy is the hour when Jesus calls a person from tears to the fullness of His joy in spirit.

John 15:14 "You are my friends if you do what I command you. "

How dry and hard we are without Jesus! How foolish and vain if we desire anything but Him! Is it not a greater loss than losing the whole world? Without Jesus, what can the world give us? Life without Him is a relentless hell, but living with Him is a sweet paradise. If Jesus be with you, no enemy can harm you.

He who finds Jesus finds a rare treasure, indeed, a good above every good, whereas he who loses Him loses more than the whole world. The man who lives without Jesus is the poorest of the poor, whereas no one is so rich as the man who lives in His grace.

It is a great art to know how to converse with Jesus, and great wisdom to know how to keep Him. Be humble and peaceful, and Jesus will be with you. Be devout and calm and He will remain with you. You may quickly drive Him away and lose His grace, if you turn back to the outside world. And, if you drive Him away and lose Him, to whom will you go and whom will you then seek as a friend?

You cannot live well without a friend, and if Jesus be not your friend above all else, you will be very sad and desolate. Thus, you are acting foolishly if you trust or rejoice in any other.

Choose the opposition of the whole world rather than offend Jesus. Of all those who are dear to you, let Him be your special love. Let all things be loved for the sake of Jesus, but Jesus for His own sake. Jesus Christ must be loved alone with a special love for He alone, of all friends, is good and faithful. For Him and in Him you must love friends and foes alike, and pray to Him that all may know and love Him.

Tip! So it is the same elsewhere in the Holy Bible (James 1:5) we have “asking” put into view as a prayer: “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all men liberally, and upbraiding [scolding somebody] not, and it shall be given him.

Never desire special praise or love, for that belongs to God alone who has no equal. Never wish that anyone's affection be centered in you, nor let yourself be taken up with the love of anyone, but let Jesus be in you and in every good person. Be pure and free within, un-entangled with any creature.

You must bring to God a clean and open heart if you wish to attend and see how sweet the Lord is. Truly you will never attain this happiness unless His grace prepares you and draws you on so that you may forsake all things to be united with Him alone.

When the grace of God comes to a person they can do all things, but when it leaves him they become poor and weak, abandoned, as it were, to hardship. Yet, in this condition they should not become dejected or despair. On the contrary, they should calmly await the will of God and bear whatever befalls them in praise of Jesus Christ, for after winter comes summer, after night, the day, and after the storm, a great calm.