Book Synopsis: Made For Friendship: The Relationship That Halves Our Sorrows and Doubles Our Joys

Synopsis:

Made For Friendship. The Relationship That Halves Our Sorrows and Doubles Our Joys

            Author:  Drew Hunter

            Crossway Publishers

            Published 2018

Have you experienced the joy of good friendship in your life?  Have you wondered how to enter the on ramp of devoted, deep, soul-satisfying friendship?  Or… have you felt the void of friendship in your life?

Drew Hunter writes to help the believer come to a deeper understanding of the need for deep, abiding friendship relationships in our lives and how God has wired us for such a need. 

“You and I were made for friendship and for fullness of joy.  These two purposes belong together.  And God gave us the first in order to experience the second, because friendship is a primary way that we tap into the true joy we’re all searching for.  Friendship is not something we made up; it’s something we were made for.  It’s a gift from above.  So let’s enjoy it together.” 

Drew helpfully divides this work into three parts:

            Part 1. The Necessity of Friendship

            Part 2  The Gift of Friendship

            Part 3. The Redemption of Friendship

Part One describes how God in His great wisdom, created us for relationship and helpfully notes how this was impacted by The Fall.  This idea is explored in a helpful way in the first part where he describes the Edenic Ache that is universal to man’s experience.

Part Two describes our friendships as the greatest of worldly goods and describes not only a “how to” but a “why to” cultivate lasting friendships.

In Part Three, Drew treats the reader to an examination of A Biblical Theology of Friendship, tracing this theme from Genesis through Revelation.

The book draws to a close examining The Great Friend, an examination of that greatest of all friends, Jesus.  Drew addresses the issue of should we…dare we, even-call Him friend?  In other words, does this bring us to a Christianity-lite—frothy, or perhaps even irreverent point in our Christian walk.  His last chapter unpacks this in a very helpful, scripturally-based rebuttal of this premise.  He goes one step further and helps the reader with compelling thoughts on cultivating a deep, abiding relationship with our Savior which will leave us changed as we grow in our love and affection for Jesus.

Each chapter ends with discussion questions to further prompt thought and discussion with a friend or a group.  I hope you will enjoy and be helped by this read.  May the Lord be glorified as we come to a richer understanding of friendship.