Intro

Part 17 dealt with what kind of friends you have. Let’s turn that gaze 180 and deal with what kind of friend you are.  What kind of friend am I?

Not-so Short Exercise 25

  1. Let’s begin first with a short list of who your friends really are (whether guys or ladies).  There are different ways of ascertaining this.  Open a new note on your phone and answer the following questions:

a. Aside from family, who do I spend most of my time with on a typical day?  List the top three.

b. Again excluding family (and creditors J) , who are the top three people (friends) on my frequent calls list?  (Check your phone.)

c. When I need help at 3 in the morning (because of an emergency, depression, insomnia…), who can I call or text? List three names.

d. When I need someone to tell me the hard, uncomfortable truth about myself or about something I may have messed up in, who is most likely to be open and brutally sincere with me?  List three names.

e. When I want to celebrate success or share some good news or have a good time with someone, who am I most likely to call?  List three names.

f. When I need someone to open my horizons once more, to get me moving again, to challenge me to aim higher and reach further with my skills and talents, who do I turn to?  List three names.

2.  Look at the names you’ve listed above.  Which would you say are the top 5 names that keep recurring?  These are most probably you’re closest friends.

3.  Next, ask yourself, with these closest friends:

a. Do I only go to them when I need something?

b. Do they find it easier to be more manly/mature (see Part 13), to be good, around me?  Or do they find it easier to live bad habits around me?

c. Do I in any way seek to open up their horizons?  Do I – through word and example – challenge them to grow and improve in their skills, talents, studies or work, sports and prayer life?

d. Do I pray for them?  Do I speak to God about them?

e. Do I speak to my friends about God?  Is it possible that I do everything with these friends except pray – even if only for a meal?

f. Do I know how to put my interests and my time in second place after them and their interests?

190420