Friendship

This is just me thinking some things through here. A total contradiction to my last post.. because I'm sure I'm not making this simple.

Friendship is something I've never fully understood. I mean, I know that I enjoy a good friendship. I know when a friendship just works and when a friendship takes work, but sometimes I'm not sure why we are friends with the people that we are friends with (not that I question those that I call friend, just the idea in general).

Why do some friendships last forever, and some only through a season? Why do some people have a million friends and others have only a few? What drives people to make friends? What drives people to stay friends?

Specifically, what makes people want to be friends with me? What do I have to offer that someone else can't? I don't say that to be hard on myself, I just often wonder this. Why am I blessed with their friendship, even if just for a season? What did I do to deserve it? Maybe it isn't about deserving?

I'm one of those people that have a {very} few close friends instead of many acquaintances. I value intense friendship - being able to really know a person and to really connect and support each other. This is, to me, why we have friends - to support, encourage, challenge and love one another.

I feel like it isn't easy to make friends. I don't know if this is a gene I'm missing or just my personality, but it is something that I struggle with. It's easy enough to make acquaintances at work that you can share a work friendship with, or make acquaintances though church that you can share accountability and faith with, but sometimes those friendships don't last outside of those environments (and sometimes they do).

I know that there are times when a friend comes in and out of my life by clear design of God. I can look back and see God's purpose in that friendship. I can also see why the friendship moved on, we grew and started that mentoring with other friends etc. This is a hard thing about friendships, but I can see the purpose in it, so it eases the change.

I wonder, though, what is the ingredient that makes a friendship last despite a change in environment, frequency of interaction and stages of life? What is it that makes a friendship really thrive?

Is it chemistry? Is it the right combination of shared interests? Is it mutual shared investment in the friendship? Is it all of those things?

I have no answers really. I never have. I am just thankful for the time I have been given with the friends I have.

Maybe someday I'll wrap my head around this friendship thing.