Flint's Eastside: When Souls Connect

Focus Scripture:

“I no longer call you servants… Instead, I have called you friends.” – John 15:15

There’s something unforgettable about meeting someone and instantly connecting, like your soul recognizes something familiar in them. You laugh at the same things, finish each other’s thoughts, and feel safe enough to cry without judgment. Time flies, walls fall, and suddenly you’re not just sharing moments, you’re sharing hearts.

I remember moments like that growing up in Flint, Michigan. Sitting on porches, playing baseball, or running the streets until the streetlights came on. Walking home from Rock Park with scraped knees and wide smiles. I think of the late-night talks, the shared secrets, and the inside jokes that still make me laugh. Lifelong friendships were forged in those places. We were young, but we were real. And those connections still echo through my life today.

Friendship, in its purest form, is one of God’s most beautiful gifts. It mirrors His heart. Jesus spent much of His time with friends, eating, walking, laughing, and teaching them. He didn’t choose perfect people. He chose fishermen, tax collectors, and skeptics. He chose men and women who would fail Him, doubt Him, and even deny Him, yet He called them friends. That is the kind of love that changes everything.

When Jesus said, “I no longer call you servants, but friends,” He was redefining the relationship between God and man. Servants work for approval. Friends walk in relationship. Servants perform out of duty. Friends respond out of love. Jesus was showing us that intimacy with Him isn’t about perfection or performance, it’s about presence. He desires time with us, not just tasks from us.

In Flint, some of my closest friendships were born out of shared struggle. We didn’t have much, but we had each other. I can still see those faces, hear the laughter, and remember the loyalty that didn’t depend on status or success. That’s the same kind of connection Jesus offers us, a relationship not built on what we bring to the table, but on the love He already has for us.

He doesn’t wait for us to clean up our act before calling us close. He meets us right where we are, in the mess, the noise, and the uncertainty. The same Jesus who wept with Mary and Martha, who cooked breakfast for Peter after his failure, and who called Zacchaeus by name still calls out to us today. He wants to walk with us down our streets, sit with us in our pain, and celebrate with us in our joy.

If you think about it, every great friendship requires honesty and trust. And that’s exactly what Christ invites us into. To be real. To bring our whole selves. To stop pretending. When we learn to be honest with Jesus, we start to understand what real intimacy looks like. It’s not distant, ritualistic religion. It’s relationship. And when our hearts finally grasp that, we realize that we are never alone.

Life Application:

Think about your closest earthly friendship, the kind where you can show up tired, broken, or even silly and still be loved. That’s the kind of relationship Jesus longs for. But for many of us, our relationship with Him feels formal, structured, even distant. We pray in hurried moments and check off our spiritual boxes, but we forget that Jesus isn’t looking for religious performance. He’s looking for connection.

Friendship with Jesus begins with intentional presence. It’s sitting with Him in silence when words don’t come easily. It’s walking and talking with Him as you go about your day. It’s inviting Him into your thoughts, your plans, and your fears. It’s laughing when life feels good and crying when it doesn’t, and knowing He’s right there in both.

In my own life, I’ve found that my most meaningful moments with Christ aren’t always in the quiet mornings of reading Scripture, but in the middle of everyday life. Driving home after a long day, watching the sun fade behind the Okinawan coast, or reminiscing about my childhood on Flint’s Eastside. Those are the moments when I feel His nearness most, when I stop trying to perform and simply rest in His presence.

Friendship with Jesus also calls us to vulnerability. Just like in our human friendships, we have to take the risk of opening up. That means confessing when we’re struggling, admitting when we’ve failed, and sharing what we don’t understand. The beauty is that He already knows it all, yet He still delights when we share our hearts. He listens. He comforts. He guides.

And here’s the truth, cultivating intimacy with Jesus strengthens every other relationship in our lives. When we walk in His love, we begin to love others with more grace, more patience, and more authenticity. The way we listen changes. The way we forgive changes. The way we speak changes. Because His friendship reshapes our hearts.

Today, take time to be still and simply be with Jesus. No agenda. No requests. Just presence. Let Him remind you that you are fully known and deeply loved. Let Him teach you again what real friendship feels like. And then, take that same love into your relationships, with your spouse, your children, your coworkers, your community. When souls connect in the love of Christ, they create ripples that last for generations.

Friends on the Eastside, Friends in Eternity

When I think about those days in Flint, I remember the way friendship looked then, simple, loyal, and pure. It was built on shared laughter, scraped knees, and long summer nights. But as I’ve grown in faith, I’ve come to see that Jesus offers a friendship even deeper than those childhood bonds. He doesn’t just sit beside us in the game; He plays every inning with us, lifting us up when we fall, celebrating when we run home.

Those early friendships taught me what connection feels like. Jesus teaches me what eternal connection means. Flint friendships shaped my heart, but Christ’s friendship redeems it.

Closing Prayer:

Jesus, thank You for calling me Your friend. You desire not just my obedience, but my heart. Help me to know You more deeply, to trust You more fully, and to love You more intimately. Teach me to walk with You like I would with a trusted companion, honest, unguarded, and full of joy. Remind me daily that the truest connection I will ever know is with You, and may that love flow freely through me to others. Amen.