OUR LADY OF THE ROSARY (MEMORIAL)

. . . a friend to whom he goes at midnight. 

Would you feel comfortable awakening someone at midnight to ask for a favor? You’d probably do it only with a close friend—someone who cares about you so much that your problem naturally becomes their problem. You trust this person completely, and they, for their part, would never turn you away. So even if you have to pound on their door, you are confident that they will eventually respond!

It’s this intimate bond of understanding between good friends that Jesus envisions for us when it comes to our relationship with our heavenly Father. What does such a “call-me-at-midnight” friendship look like? Here are a few qualities:

Vulnerability. Close friends open their hearts to and with each other in raw, tender situations. They offer presence, compassion, pushback, and maybe even a sense of humor.

Habitual communication. It’s second nature to pick up the phone and call a good friend (or hear the phone ring yourself) whenever something is going on with the other person. Friends want to share their lives, both the good and the bad.

Trust. “Call-me-at-midnight” friends know and value each other’s goodness and faithfulness, so they implicitly trust one another.

Mutual service. Dear friends care for each other’s concrete needs because they desire what’s best for each other. They show up when their friend asks for help without tallying who has done more.

The qualities of wonderful friendships here on earth show a dynamic, gritty picture of love, don’t they? It’s like Jesus’ parable, where the sleepy-eyed man shares his family’s provisions because his friend knocks persistently, not because he likes to be awakened at midnight.

Your heavenly Father is a dynamic, real-life friend. He is your dearest friend, even if he sometimes seems “slow to answer the door.” But Jesus urges us not to give up, not to mistrust him, and never to stop asking the Father for what we need. Because in the end, he will give us every good gift!

“Father, give me the grace to trust you more than any other friend.”

Malachi 3:13-20
Psalm 1:1-4, 6
Luke 11:5-13

WORD AMONG US