Mark and Raymond discovered that when Henry was away from work, he was mellow and easy-going, and a joy to be with. We are wired for companionship. Nowadays instead of friends we have causes. There are friends of gardens, parks, countries, cities and states. If we don't quite trust the Bible, medical studies show over and over again that having friends is good for you.
Few friends lead to higher stress and a shorter life.
Those with friends have a lower risk of health problems, and they recover faster when they do develop them. A Yale University study of 10,000 seniors showed that having friends reduced the risk of death by about 50 percent over a five-year period. Friends can help you reduce stress, improve the quality of your life, live longer, get a better job, expand your business, improve your closest relationships, and derive more joy from your life. There is no down side. When we do friendships the way God would have us do them, there are only benefits.