READING: Acts 27:1-44
Christian friends really do matter. In some sense, that’s because they’re more than just “friends” as the world defines that designation; instead, they’re family joined together by the blood of Jesus. In today’s reading, the apostle Paul was the recipient of the ministry of such friends (in fact, some scholars suggest the believers may have been known as “the friends” in the first century).
Paul was on his way to Rome as a prisoner when the ship he was in harbored at Sidon. There, the Roman centurion named Julius “treated Paul kindly and allowed him to go to his friends to receive their care” (Acts 27:3). We don’t know precisely how the gospel got to Sidon, nor do we know exactly what kind of care Paul received from the believers there, but we can trust they offered provision, encouragement, and prayers. The text makes clear they cared for the apostle as one of their own. That’s just what Christian friends do.
I thank God today for my Christian friends, who are actually part of my family.
PERSONAL REFLECTION: Which of your Christian friends might you encourage and care for today?
DAILY PRAYER: “Help me, God, to be a faithful friend today.”
TOMORROW’S READING: Acts 28:1-32, Ephesians 1:1-2:22