‘A man who has friends must himself be friendly.’ Proverbs 18:24 NKJV    Jonathan and David had a very strong friendship. The Bible says: ‘By the time David had finished reporting to Saul, Jonathan was deeply impressed with David – an immediate bond was forged between them. He became totally committed to David. From that point on he would be David’s number-one advocate and friend’ (1 Samuel 18:1 MSG). Jonathan was heir to the throne, but he voluntarily gave it up because he knew his friend David was God’s choice to be king. Jonathan desired to be a friend more than he desired to be a king. People often want to put their own success over and above their friendships with others. But friendship, and God’s ultimate plan, was more important to Jonathan. And their friendship ended up changing the course of Israel. Whether we’re introvert or extrovert, shy or outgoing, friendship is an important thing in our lives. We need other people for support, advice and prayer. God can use our friends to speak to us. But in order for us to have strong and godly friendships we need to be prepared to be strong godly friends to others. The Bible says: ‘A man who has friends must himself be friendly.’ Friendships like Jonathan and David’s don’t just happen. They have to be worked at and grown, just like any relationship. When we meet up with our friends, we can often find ourselves checking our phones, watching TV or checking our watch to make sure we’ll get to wherever we need to be next on time. Developing strong friendships requires the investment of quality time. It involves focusing completely on what the other person is saying. It involves putting people above our own personal gains, just like Jonathan did in his friendship with David.