Read: John 15:12-15; 1 Corinthians 13:4-7

“Mom, it’s going to be so great having Piper live right across the street!” Ava said as she got ready to go help her best friend’s family move things into their new house. “Now we can sit together on the school bus and go to each other’s houses all the time. And pizza is her favorite food, just like mine!”

Mom smiled as she took a pizza out of the oven. “It’s nice that you and Piper have so much in common.”

Ava nodded. “We’re going to do everything together.”

The next day Ava came storming into the house. “Piper isn’t my best friend anymore,” she said. “I went over to see if she could play and found out she was off playing tennis with Lucy.”

“Oh, Ava,” said Mom. “It’s nice that you two are friends, but you need other friends too. Lucy and Piper like tennis, and you don’t.”

“I don’t care,” said Ava. “Best friends always stick together!”

At dinner that evening, Ava was surprised to see spaghetti on her parents’ plates and pizza from the day before on her own. “Where’s my spaghetti?” she asked.

“Since pizza is your favorite food, I decided you could have it for every meal,” Mom told her.

Dad nodded. “Mom says you can even have it for breakfast every day. Isn’t that great?”

“I don’t want pizza all the time,” Ava said. “I like other things too.” She frowned. “Why are you doing this?”

Mom smiled. “Well, I was hoping it would help you see that variety is a good thing—not only in meals but also in friendships. Piper needs the freedom to have more than just one friend, and you do too. The Bible tells us to love our friends, but the way you’re treating Piper isn’t very loving at all—it’s selfish.”

“Mom’s right, Ava,” said Dad. “After all, Jesus didn’t spend all His time with just one person—if He had, others wouldn’t have known that He was the Son of God who had come to save them. How can you be like Jesus and reach out to someone who needs a friend?”

Ava thought about it. “Maybe I’ll invite Cassie over to watch a movie, if that’s okay.”

“That’s fine,” said Mom. “But first you need to eat some spaghetti!”

–Ruth McQuilkin

How about you? Do you get jealous if your best friend has other friends? It’s good to have a close friend you want to spend time with, but both of you need to spend time with other friends too. The mark of real friendship is love for each other, and love means giving your friend the freedom to form friendships with others. You need other friends too—and they need you! How can you show someone Jesus’s love by being a friend to them?

Today's Key Verse: A friend loves at all times. Proverbs 17:17 (NKJV)

Today's Key Thought: Enjoy many friends