Epic stories stir the soul. The blend of joy and sorrow, heartache and victory, tragedy and glorious deeds awakens a desire within us to strive and fight and seek to do the same. So often epic friendships form a marvelous strand of these epic stories.
Frodo and Sam. Legolas and Gimli. Sherlock and Watson. Merlin and Arthur.
Their friendships inspire us and leave us longing (or grateful) for such friends of our own.
(On a side note, I racked my brain for an example of a great literary friendship between girls, and the only one that I could come up with on the spot, where the two girls weren’t sisters, was Anne Shirley and Diana Barry. Maybe you guys can think of some? But honestly, I wonder if this lack of truly great girl friendships isn’t worthy of a post in and of itself?)
One of my favorite friendship pairs is actually David and Jonathan from the Bible. You see, Jonathan is an unsung hero. Compared to David’s many exploits (slaying Goliath, leading Saul’s army, playing a mad man among the Philistines—tales worthy of a bard!), Jonathan’s own heroic deeds are often forgotten. Ever heard about that time when Jonathan and his armor bearer scaled a cliff to single-handedly fight a whole outpost of Philistine warriors, and how God sent a panic afterwards that put the whole army into rout? (1 Samuel 14)
Pretty awesome, isn’t it?
In his own right, Jonathan was a warrior. By right of blood, he was heir to Saul’s throne. By all customs, the kingdom should have passed to him. But Jonathan was a humble man and faithful enough that he was willing to stand aside and recognize God’s sovereignty over David’s anointing as king in his stead.
He sacrificed everything for his friend, including the love and trust of his own father. Many times, Jonathan stood before Saul and sought to turn his anger away from David. He brought that wrath down upon himself, until Saul in his madness sought to kill his own son with a spear. Even then, Jonathan did not turn against David, resent him, or abandon him. Instead, he journeyed to where David was hiding out from Saul and “helped him find strength in the Lord.” (I Samuel 23:16)
“Don’t be afraid,” he said. “My father Saul will not lay a hand on you. You will be king over Israel, and I will be second to you. Even my father Saul knows this.” The two of them made a covenant before the Lord. Then Jonathan went home, but David remained at Horesh.
I Samuel 23:17-18 (NIV)
To me, that is the true purpose of friendship. Encouragement and strength in the Lord. I think that too often in the world that we live in, encouragement has come to mean nothing but “feel-good” words that are often empty and ultimately meaningless. But the word courage is found in encouragement. It bears the connotation of rallying, of strengthening, of girding up and supplying confidence and boldness, as if for the fight.
And especially when we encourage our friends in the Lord and help them find strength in Him. I love that picture! This concept where friendship is like standing in the gap of the shield wall, of stepping forward when your friend falls down. Of spurring your friends on to better and braver deeds. Of speaking truth to their souls when the night closes in.
Words are powerful. As readers and writers and lovers of words, we know that. But so often in this digital world of ours, where we can hide behind screens and online personas, people seem to forget. So many of the things that are typed online would not be said face to face. Kindness flies out the window. Courtesy is unknown. And the urge to tear down instead of building up wins the day.
But it isn’t always like that. Recently, I’ve been blessed with the opportunity to see the fruit of encouragement in my own life. Faithful friends who wrote a letter at just the right time. Readers who took a moment out of their own busy lives to type an email. It’s a simple thing, and yet it means so much to have this reminder that I’m not alone, that there is someone who has my back, who will fight at my side, and will stand in the gap when I can stand no more.
Recognizing the impact that those words have had in my life, I have started to seek out opportunities to do the same. And do you know what? It takes very little effort—in the grand scheme of things—to send an email, pen a note, or text an encouraging word that can embolden someone to stand strong and carry on throughout the day.
And let us not forget the other side of this: strengthening one another in the Lord. How do we do that? By being open and vulnerable with one another. By bearing witness to the awesome things that God has done in our lives and pointing others to view His faithfulness. By standing upon God’s Word and the promises within and helping our friends to do the same.
Let us be brothers and sisters in arms. Let us stand side by side in the shield wall, stepping forward to protect one another and to encourage one another to rise!
Your turn! I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments:
- Who are your favorite literary friendships?
- Has someone been this type of friend for you lately, encouraging you and strengthening you in the Lord?
- What are some ways that you can encourage and strengthen others today?
Hello…I’m new here! But I have heard of you as an author many times and I finally found your page :)
How often we forget those words and examples! This post is filled with so much beauty and truth, especially since you used the example of Jonathan and David which are my favorite ever friendship. Thank you so much for sharing!
As a side note have you ever read the Dahveed Books by Terri L. Fivash? Not everyone likes them but I really loved reading them, they are about David’s life as said in the Bible with historical details and plot added.
Anna – http://www.worldthroughherheart.blogspot.com
Hi Anna! So nice to meet you. So glad that you stopped by my neck of the woods!
David and Jonathan’s friendship is really so inspiring, and poor Jonathan’s story is so tragic. I’ve always wondered what it would have been to live life as Jonathan, best friend to the man who was chosen to take your place! He really must have had such a humble, faithful, trusting heart. So much to learn from!
I hadn’t actually heard of those books before but they sound really neat! Growing up, David was one of my heroes, like King Arthur or Robin Hood, but even cooler because I knew his tale hadn’t been obscured by myth or legend. Another David/Jonathan tale I’ve really enjoyed is Jonathan Rogers Wilderking Trilogy. It’s a unique take on the story – frontier fantasy and so much fun!
Thank you! it’s nice to meet you too :)
Oh yes, having read the above mentioned books…it made it even more tragic for me. He did so much for David, and was so trusting in God’s plan, enough to put his life up for his friend. He really set the bar high for the definition of a true friend!
And those books sound fascinating :) I will have to check them out.
Thank you :)
– Anna
Great post, Gill! :D Encouragement and turning others to the strength the LORD offers is very much an important thing in Life.
… Life right now has actually been really hard recently, so dwelling on thoughts like these is … ENCOURAGING. ^_^
One of my favorite character friendships? …Such a hard question! Rrg! I guess the first ones I thought of are in Bryan Davis’ “Dragons In Our Midst” series (and follow-up series). There are so many friendships and bonds built in that series that I can’t pick one over the other! X} There’s:
> Billy and Walter
> Billy and Bonnie
> Bonnie and Ashley
> Walter and Ashley
> Karen and Ashley
> Professor Hamilton with his students (Billy, Walter & Bonnie primarily)
> among many others! XD
*sigh* But if I had to pick one– *just remembers other books and relationships* Ugh! I can’t list them all! XD Anyway, if I had to pick my favorite from this series, it would be Billy and Bonnie. :)
Oh, Alexis, I’m sorry life has been rough lately! Glad you were able to find some encouragement in reflecting on these things. I hope there’s someone who can step forward in your life and encourage you, like Jonathan did for David!
I have never actually read the Dragons in Our Midst series! Seen it in a hundred different stores and almost picked it up at least a dozen times, but somehow I never did. I love that there are so many great friendships in the series! That’s awesome. :)
Thanks. :} My sister is a big help, along with my mom and dad. It’s just we’ve had a couple _young_ people unexpectedly pass away (one a cousin of mine, another a friend of the family). :( But God is faithful and will bring good out of tragedy.
It’s my favorite series ever! X} Ever since reading them, Bryan Davis has become my favorite author of all time (after God ;P). It’s a really inspiring and adventure-filled tale from beginning to end! ^w^ If you couldn’t already guess, I highly recommend them. X}
I love this post so much. ^_^ THANK YOU! And yes, Jonathan was fantastic. :D I have so many fictional friendships I love but can’t think of right now. o.o Thank you for sharing this! I totally believe that encouraging words online can have a huge impact and I that’s what I try to do when I can — this post is a beautiful reminder! :)
You’re so great at being encouraging online, Deborah! (And I’m sure in person too!)