"A friend loves at all times,
and a brother is born for adversity." Proverbs 17:17

You know you want them, but they are often hard to find -- they are friends. The kind of friends that will get up at 2:00 am and rush to your aid for no other reason than they care about you. While you may be afraid to admit it openly, I bet you wish deep down you had a friend like this. A friend that was "closer than a brother." Yet men, too often, go through life without one.

This proverb speaks openly about what you seldom confess. You long for meaningful relationships with other men. A friendship with another man that ascends the bond of two male siblings who are in constant competition with one another. The author of the proverb communicates a need to be loved, known, and valued for who he is regardless of his successes and shortcomings. And it's not something you just find. It's something you build. It's something you are. We commonly call this friend "brother" because it means so much more than "friend." While we neglect to call it a bond of love, this is in essence what it is.

DO THIS: Be a brother today, and thank someone for their friendship.

PRAYER: God, you know my need for friendship in my isolation. Help me to be loved and to extend love to others. God, I pray that in this void of friendship you will send me a friend who is closer than a brother.