In high school, it seems like most teens want to be popular. But what does it mean to be popular? Is everyone your friend? No. Do a lot of people know you? Yeah, in a superficial sense. This continues into adulthood, as we can often obsess over our image and likeability. Even if you achieve widespread admiration among your peers, how many people really know you?

In reality, happiness is not found in achieving acclaim in the eyes of others. One huge ingredient in forming a happy life is developing deep friendships with other people. But how many people really have an inner circle of those they have completely opened up to? It wasn’t until college that I found friends that I connected to on a deep level. They knew everything about me—the good, the not so good, the downright annoying, and even the dark and sinful parts of my life. But they still loved me and accepted me. That’s true friendship.

Not every friend can be a close friend. In order to have others open up to you, you have to take the risk to open up as well. Unfortunately, not everyone is capable of doing this in return. You want a circle of people around you who are also growing and maturing. Sometimes you might trust someone who turns out to be unworthy of that trust. They break promises, they refuse to see things from your point of view, they preach at you rather than listen, they spread private information about you. This is when they prove to be unsafe. It takes a discerning mind and a cautious heart, but there are people out there willing and mature enough to support you. So reach out in faith and God will bring the right people into your life.

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