Friends Everywhere

Photo by Chang Duong on Unsplash

Part of the second season of the Star Wars TV show Andor takes place a year before the events of Rogue One and A New Hope. The titular character Cassian Andor, a spy for the Rebel Alliance, is assigned to help another significant character escape the Empire’s clutches. This other character is about to make a speech as an act of political defiance, and she could very well end up arrested or killed if Cassian doesn’t intervene.

The problem is, Cassian and this other character have never actually met. So when Cassian arrives to help her escape arrest, he says four words to her that signify his role as her Rebel “getaway driver”:

“I have friends everywhere.”

As soon as he says these words to her, the background music changes and the other character looks at him in understanding. Trust is quickly established.

Andor Season 2 premiered just over a year ago, but it was such a meaningful and poignant story that it still sticks with me. Even a year later, those four words get me thinking.

How many people can genuinely say they are rich in friendship?

How many can honestly say they have many significant and diverse relationships based on mutual trust and selflessness?

Taking it even further, how many people, if they were being honest with themselves, would admit to being lonely in a world where “connection” is supposed to be easier than ever?

One of the most impactful books I’ve read in the last few years is called No Greater Love: A Biblical Vision for Friendship by Rebecca McLaughlin. McLaughlin’s thesis in this book is that friendships are our most valuable possessions in this life, and that Jesus exemplified that to the furthest extent by dying for His friends (which includes us today) that they might be freed from the bondage of sin and death.

Knowing we’re not alone emboldens and empowers us. Having support networks to encourage and be present with us gives us better quality of life than if we didn’t have other people “in our corner.”

On the opposite end of this, it is practically a curse to have no one to trust and love. There’s a passage in the Bible about an evil king of Judah, a descendant of David, who killed his own brothers to cement his reign and formed alliances with other wicked rulers. He ends up dying of a gross intestinal disease, and the Bible states “he departed with no one’s regret” (2 Chronicles 21:20). He wasn’t even buried in the same tomb as his forefathers, which would’ve been considered a postmortem middle finger at that time.

What a way to go.

I heartily agree with McLaughlin’s thesis that friendship is one of the best things you can possess. Quality friendships have made my life so rich, and not for the reasons you might expect.

I’m not looking for people to do things for me—at least, not without properly thanking and/or compensating them.

My goal is to find people to give myself to. Friendships made only with the goal of getting something tend not to last; I’ve had some of those, and I learned my lesson. Now, I will admit, I haven’t always been the best friend in this regard, but this is also something I’m continuously working on. And my friends have permission to call me out on my junk.

Friendship is classic agape love: self-sacrificial care between individuals that seeks to give more than it takes. Romantic love takes it even further: spouses are meant to serve each other unselfishly, and problems arise when one person’s “acts of love” become prideful or self-pleasing.

To illustrate this point, I’ll return to Andor.

The Rebel Alliance is a ragtag group of misfits who’ve banded together to fight the colossal, cold, fascist government that is the Empire.

In this show, characters from both the Rebel Alliance and the Empire are represented. By and large, the main Rebel characters go out of their way to help each other, even if they often bicker or don’t have the best attitudes. The Empire characters, however, are on their own, even as they work together. Each one has their own dreams of glory and regularly steps on other people to get ahead.

We even see two different examples of romantic relationships. The Rebel relationship is caring, warm, and intimate, even if they don’t always get along. The Empire relationship is odd, to say the least: it’s based on strict order, off-putting displays of affection, and secrets that end up being destructive.

Towards the end of the show, one Rebel character realizes another is in danger and rushes to the rescue, risking serious repercussions. In contrast, when a character in the Empire ends up on the hook for a major problem, no one stands up to defend them, and they fall dramatically.

I have developed many friendships in my own life. Not all of them are close, though some are. But most of these friendships are beneficial in that we are on good terms and will encourage one another if the situation arises, even if we don’t agree on things like politics or societal expectations.

Of course, I also have some friends whose lives I speak into on a regular basis. I know their struggles and victories and they know mine. Together, we strive for greater love of each other and God.

In many cases, having such friends means enjoying significant support during trying times, or when working on a project or goal that’s difficult to do alone. It also means having people to celebrate with when things go well.

I have friends everywhere. I’m beyond grateful that God has seen fit to connect me with people who love and care about me in the same ways I love and care about them.

And I’ve found that, when all else fades away, I treasure these relationships more than anything material I possess.