There are some good reasons for developing the character of friendliness. One reason is the Golden Rule.  “Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets,” Matthew 7:12. We want people to be friendly to us, so we should be friendly to them.

Another reason we should be friendly to people: If no one were friendly to each other the world would be a very unpleasant place to live! Also, Proverbs 18:24 says, “A man that hath friends must show himself friendly: and there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother.” If you want a friend, you have to be a friend!

What does it mean to be friendly? The word “friendly” is defined as “having the temper and disposition of a friend; kind; favorable; disposed to promote the good of another” or “amicable.” Basically, it all comes back to the Golden Rule!

You may say, “It is too hard to be friendly to So-and-so! They are not friendly back to me.” But we are not supposed to decide when to do right based on whether others are doing right. Who knows; maybe So-and-so is waiting for you to be friendly to them and is saying the same thing about you!

Some people are easy to be friendly to! Other people are over friendly. Although it is right to be friendly, in my personal opinion I think that being over friendly makes the other person feel uncomfortable.

Other people think they are too important to be friendly to certain people. Philippians 2:7 says, speaking of Jesus, “But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:” Jesus humbled himself, and so should we, according to 1 Peter 5:6, “Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:” We should not think we are “somebody”; we are really nobody. No one is better than another. You should not let pride get in the way of being friendly to someone.

So, what are some ways to be friendly? One of the simplest ways to be friendly is to smile and say “Hello” or “How are you?” to someone. It is not a sin to be shy or timid around other people. However, you should ask the Lord to help you overcome your shyness so that He can better use you. Do not use your timidity as an excuse for being unfriendly. Some people may mistake bashfulness for unfriendliness! Being friendly does not mean that you have to start a long deep conversation with someone. Just be yourself, and remember to treat others the way you would like to be treated.

Remember that we are always to follow our Saviour’s example. You can be sure that the Lord was friendly to people he met while he was on the earth. We should do the same. And, of course, remember the Golden Rule. It is a good rule to use for everything in our lives!