We often say that Jesus is our friend, and when we do, we look to Him to fill our loneliness, to listen to us and support us in our projects. But we rarely think that this friendship was meant to be reciprocal.
The song “Hosanna” from Hillsong is frequently sung in our churches. It talks about the King of glory coming with fire, the King of grace that forgives our sins and a generation that rises to take their place.
Toward the end, the song says “Break my heart for what breaks yours.” God? Broken hearted? We rarely imagine our Heavenly Father this way. Even if He is a Spirit, He has also all kinds of emotions. He feels anger (Deuteronomy 9.22 and Romans 1:18), He laughs (Psalms 2.4), He has compassion (Judges 2.18), He grieves (Genesis 6.6), and many others emotions. Jesus was like His Father, showing compassion and being irritated against the Pharisees. We all know that the Spirit of God can be grieved (Ephesians 4:30). Yes, God as a Trinity has emotions.
If you are willing to have a bidirectional friendship with God, He will open up His heart at times. These are surely the most precious moments we can have with the Holy Spirit. When He shares His sorrows, our relationship takes on another dimension. We should all desire, as the song says, to have our heart broken for what breaks His. Whether He wants us to correct our actions or to intercede for the sins of others.
God thinks, and He makes plans (Amos 4.13 and Jeremiah 29.11). Just like your friends who share their ideas and projects, being a friend of God means that He will passionately share His plans and projects. God wants to partner with us (1 Corinthians 3.9). He does not want to command us things to do; He desires to tell us His vision and His motives. So you can be a partner with Him, as a friend.
You know what? As a friend, sometimes, He will just want to chat! When we think about hearing the voice of God, we often believe that it will be something serious, prophetic, or some commandment. But no, sometimes He quietly feels like telling us what He knows and He has much more experience than us! He wants to tell us stories about things He has seen that will make us laugh or light up. Just like a friend, if you start chatting like that with God, you will not see time fly!
Yes, God is a Father. He is God, and we must show a deep respect and complete obedience. He also wants to be our friend and tell us how He feels, His projects and tons of His’ stories! Since He is omnipresent (He can be everywhere at once - Psalm 139.2), He is right there with you and He longs for you to pay attention to Him. Are you willing to be a friend of God?