Hit television series sometimes center on a group of friends. For example the rightly titled “Friends,” or Seinfeld, or Cheers, or The Big Bang Theory. The theme song from one of these issues a heartfelt cry of many people: “Sometimes you wanna go . . . where everybody knows your name, and they’re always glad you came.”

Even the Lord Jesus didn’t go into the Garden of Gethsemane alone. When he went to pray and felt the darkness of what was ahead, he went with his disciples (Matthew 26:36-46), those who were his closest companions, though they proved to be useless in the heat of the moment. These days we’re reminded that we need friends. Today’s teaching is from Ephesians 6:21-24.