“Everyone therefore who acknowledges me before others, I also will acknowledge before my Father in heaven; but whoever denies me before others, I also will deny before my Father in heaven” (Matthew 10:32-33).
Who are your friends? When in another group, do you acknowledge your friend, or do you ignore them? If Jesus is in your life, do you acknowledge Him as a friend always? We do this with our earthly connections, but do we do them with our eternal relationship with the Lord? Do not be dismayed by this. If the Lord is your friend, and He is the best friend you can ever have, then acknowledge Him in all places.
Why is it Lord that I disconnect with friends? If they are truly friends, then what difference does it make what the circumstances are? Help me to be consistent so that I may truly be a friend to all whom I call friends. Rather than seeing them, or You, as attachments to my world, help me to have genuine relationship with others. Teach me so that I do not deny You or my neighbor despite the circumstance.
Lord Jesus, this is not the law You are speaking, but the reality of relationship. I am sometimes (always?) selfish and see things through appearances. Help me to move to the place where I see things through Your eyes. Guide me in Your grace to repent when I am not genuine or deny my friends because I am afraid. Lead me into all righteousness so that I may humbly walk where You lead. Amen.
