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I have been thinking about friendship a lot lately. Those of us who have grown up in the traditional church know the hymn, “What a Friend We Have in Jesus.” It is about carrying everything in our lives to Jesus, all our sins, griefs and cares. The words encourage us in our times of trouble, lift us up and lighten our burdens. To tell the truth, it was not a hymn I liked very much as a young person, but I have come to love it.

I can’t sing “What a Friend We Have in Jesus” without remembering the tears and joys of persons who were battling illness, or facing losses in their lives. How those words lit up and animated their faces. In singing the words together, we shared the truth that nothing was important as our relationship with Jesus. Most of my friends and I share this common value of loving Jesus. For others, it is the words of a praise chorus that brought hearts together in their love of Jesus. We are friends because, if nothing else, we are united by our love of Jesus.

Members of the Boomer generation and those ages 16 to 29 have a different view of the world and the church. David Kinnaman and Gabe Lyons, in their book “UnChristian,” ask the question, “What does a new generation really think about Christianity and why does it matter?” The disturbing news is the majority of the new generation like Jesus, but they are unsure if the church is the place where they will meet him or experience God’s grace. The good news from “UnChristian” is that “Young people talk these days about the need for authenticity, for ‘keeping it real’” — not pretending to be somebody you are not, being open about our faults. Young people are searching for this type of person, this kind of lifestyle. In one survey we found that ‘doing what you say you are going to do’ was among the characteristics young people most admired.”

While the new generation is skeptical about giving us the benefit of the doubt, as Christians our role is still the same. We are to share with our friends our love of Jesus. When we live authentic lives transformed by our friendship with Jesus, others will want to hear about Jesus and be part of that circle of friends. Friendships with those we study, pray and worship with are treasured. Friendships that allow us to share about Jesus are just as important. How is your love of Jesus blessing you with friendships, and how are you using your friendships as a way of telling others about Jesus?

• The Rev. Kevin Campbell is  minister of Federated Methodist-Presbyterian Church. Sermon Notes is a column by ministers of the Patterson Ministerial Association. Any religious leader who would like to write for the column may contact the Patterson Irrigator.