Greet the Friends by Name

[S] 3 John 1:12,15 --
¹²Demetrius has received a good testimony from everyone, and from the truth itself; and we add our testimony, and you know that our testimony is true.
 ¹⁵Peace be to you The friends greet you Greet the friends by name.

[O] At times I ask myself the question of who my close friends really are.  Then I began to think of some names.  Do I feel comfortable picking up the phone and calling them up now by their first names just to say "hi?"  Calling others by their name creates or in some cases displays the intimacy in the relationships.  John mentions about Demetrius by name and he concludes this chapter by encouraging friends to greet each other by name.

[A] I want to build friendships where we can both call each other by name through very intimate relationships.  Perhaps because I've been in various serving roles at church I focused a little more on sustaining relationships at the "official" level rather than on personal and intimate level.  On top of that, wihtin a Korean culture, we tend to keep relationships more on a formal basis and that did not help either.  I am now realizing that I need to invest in intimate relationships which I could reference like John did in this letter as the co-working partner in Christ.

[P] Dear God, I desire to create a fabric of relationships where I may grow deeper in friendships with them and that I will cherish such deeper friendships for the rest of my life.  Please allow me to establish these friendships in You.  In Jesus Christ's name I ask.  Amen.