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Friend (noun) – a person you know well and regard with affection and trust (definitions.net); a person you know well and who you like a lot (dictionary.cambridge.org); a person attached to another by feelings of affection and personal regard (dictionary.com); A friend is someone you respect and who respects you. A friend is honest and makes you want to be honest too. A friend is loyal. (urbandictionary.com)

All of these definitions describe my friend Max Willi Fischer. He and I first met during a singles group meeting at a Lutheran Church, while I was attending Ashland Theological Seminary. Four decades have come and gone since that day, and our friendship continues to grow and flourish.

Until social distancing, Max and I met regularly at a halfway point in Cambridge. He and his wife, Sharon have often walked and talked with me along the cobbled streets of Roscoe Village and lit candles there for Christmas.

When I was first called to St. John’s, Max, who is a lay preacher and teacher, came and helped me with a Good Friday service. Max, a retired teacher and I share a love of history. And we’re both writers. He critiques my columns and I review his books.

He sent me an autographed copy of his first book, The Corkscrew App. Here are my comments on one of his works American Brush Off, from amazon.com.

"Mr. Fischer enabled me to be present and to empathize with Lud Mueller and his family. His creative writing and research skills are readily apparent. I want to thank him for bringing to light and life a part of American History that I was unfamiliar with. Needless to say, there are important lessons to be learned here."

On the biography he wrote for Amazon, Max wrote on how his family's background impacted his interest in history.

“I grew up in a bilingual household with German immigrant parents. My father followed his aunt and uncle to America to find work. Family get-togethers were small because the rest of our family remained in Germany. My father worked two jobs to improve our lives and put my brother and me through school. He will always be the most respected man I have known and the ultimate role model.”

Recently, I awakened from a dream and these lyrics from a song by Carole King were playing that speak to what friends do when, “the sky above turns dark and full of clouds.”

You just call out my name, and you know wherever I am, I’ll come running, yeah, yeah, to see you again. Winter, spring summer or fall, all you have to do is call, and I’ll be there, yes I will (because) you’ve got a friend.

Because of the pandemic, most of my pastoral calls and prayers have been virtual. And it was my wise and insightful friend, Max who taught me how to do this when he offered to pray at the end of a phone conversation.

Before this day is through, why not call and offer to pray with a loyal friend, one you have long regarded with affection and trust. When you do, you can be sure that our BFF, Jesus will be listening in, hearing and responding.

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