There is an old saying that goes, “Tell me who your friends are and I will tell you who you are.” While this is true for some people , there seems to be a more echoing truth about friendship—“Tell me who your friends are and I will tell you where they will take you.” Righteous friends can use their influence to lift each other closer to Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.

In the book of Luke is an account of a man sick of palsy cured by Jesus. What makes this account so precious, aside from the miracle that Jesus performed in curing this man, are the men or friends who brought the sick man to Jesus. The account reads:

18 And, behold, men brought in a bed a man which was taken with a palsy: and they sought means to bring him in, and to lay him before him.

19 And when they could not find by what way they might bring him in because of the multitude, they went upon the housetop, and let him down through the tiling with his couch into the midst before Jesus (Luke 5).

The story ends with the sick man being healed by Jesus Christ, arising from his couch and departing to his house. I salute the men who brought him in through the housetops. Righteous friends do not give up when the entrance is blocked or when obstacles are eminent. Their actions are a manifestation of their love and concern for the well-being of the sick man. It may not be explicitly stated in this account that these men are the sick man’s friends, but I think I can say with surety that they are. How joyful it must have been for them when they saw the sick man being healed.

Righteous friends will take you to Christ.

Perhaps there is little possibility of such an event happening in our lives, being brought in through the rooftops while we are sick. However, there are many experiences that can be likened to it—experiences pertaining to our spiritual well-being. There are times when we feel spiritually weak and our perception on a lot of things is unclear. We feel lost and we do not know where we should be headed. In this situation, we become like the sick man—weak and unable to act. At these points in our lives—where do we think our friends will take us? In such moments, our choice of friends can determine where we go, to the Savior or towards other remedies the world may have to offer.

On the other hand, we can liken ourselves to the men or friends who brought the sick man in. These righteous friends are the people we definitely want to become—loving, kind, persistent, never giving up on people we hold dear and having the faith required for our sick friends to be healed by the Great Healer of all.

Let us surround ourselves with friends who will help take us to Christ and let us be that kind of friend to others.