My Friends...

These gals are my best friends! Some closer than others, but nevertheless, more important than I could ever verbalize. Do you have a best friend? At least one who will stand by you no matter what? I've asked myself many times why God has blessed me so much in this area of my life. My blessings are great, my heart is full, and I am humbled by His goodness to me. Having friends, especially close ones, can give fulfillment, security, happiness and sometimes a little pain. Thankfully, not all at once. I have found that becoming vulnerable to another person can be a risk, but on the other hand it also can be our greatest asset, as well as God's greatest tool to:

a. Shave a little (or alot) off those rough edges in us,
b. Work on that character quality we are not so good at emulating in a "pinch,"
c. Show the stark contrast of God's characteristics vs. ours, and...
d. Encourage us to become more like Him...thus, making us be a better friend.

How good of God to never leave us or forsake us when we aren't the best of friends to Him.
We can become pretty fickle sometimes, can't we? I want to be a woman He can count on, just like I want to be the best of friends to those who have touched, and continue to bless my life. So, for those of you who aren't in this picture I've posted. Thank you for being so stedfast, so wonderfully perfect for me in every way. You know who you are...and I love you.

~J U S T I F I C A T I O N ~

Are we "followers" or "leaders?" Most of us encourage our children to obey authority, but not to follow the crowd. Remember your parents asking, "if your friend jumped off a cliff, would you jump after them?" Life is full of dichotomies, isn't it? We end up following fashion trends, using the same language as those we are around most, keep busy trying to belong to a group or click, or being like someone we idolize. If we are fortunate enough to have a healthy self-image we don't care, well, not quite as much what others think.

I decided to use this day at home spending some time in the warm sun, we haven't had much of it these past two weeks. Our front yard looks like no one lives here right now. So as I donned my tennis shoes and jeans, I tied up the dog on the front lawn (loose description,) and proceeded to pull weeds and wild grass. Living out here in the country, we seem to have more of them, however. It makes for easier pulling when the ground is wet from the rains we've had. Maybe I'm a little strange, but God always seems to show me "object lessons" when I get off to myself doing something.

There is a lot of stress going on now with the extra pressures that this new economy is producing. No one is immune to it in any way, shape, or form. Whether we complain about the state of our nation, or find fault with our leaders, it seems we end up choosing sides. Neither is right, would be my guess. Aren't we, after all, bearing the consequences of the decisions WE have made, because that was what every one else was doing? We often justify our actions because everyone else is doing it. Now we find ourselves trying to dig ourselves out, one way or another. Many are left with very little compared to what they had just a year or two ago. Millions of dollars have been lost, financial institutions have closed along with many once strong, long standing businesses. Marriages are falling by the wayside due to financial stress, debt, and lack of commitment. Jobs are hard to find because of a flooded unemployment base. All pretty depressing, right? In reading the Psalms this past week, I see that King David had it all, with exception of denying himself on several poignant occasions. He lost all that was important to him because he began putting his needs above others...his integrity, loss of more than one son, and the pleasure of building the Temple in Jerusalem. Hard lessons to learn, and yet he was referred to "a man after God's own heart." Experiencing just these things, you would think he would have become embittered, hopeless, and even turned from God...but, he didn't. He didn't justify his actions, he repented and allowed God to restore "the joy of his salvation." Life only gives us one opportunity to get it right. Is it worth it to not learn from our mistakes and failures and become lost in the crowd? Or do we stop to recognize that God is able to make lemonade out of lemons...Nothing is ever lost in His economy when it comes to His children. We can trust Him because He is trustworthy! Romans 8:28 For all things work together for our good. To those who love God and are called according to His purposes.

I need thee, Oh, I need thee; Ev'ry hour I need thee....

All I can say is that "God is Absolutely Amazing!" There have been times this past week, that I have made comments, and then once said, have almost felt that I was making promises for Him that I myself had no way of keeping. I know that His promises are true, but when we need something done moue (sp) pronto, it's shakey ground at times. However, knowing that God accomplishes more when we just get out of His way is one thing that I continue to learn. Life is a journey, and there is often a huge learning curve, probably because God is soooo patient with our tiny mustard seed size amount of faith in His never ending faithfulness to us. Father, help me to continue as I trust & believe in your stedfastness
wholeheartedly, unreservedly, and be willing to learn the lessons, especially the hard and heart wrenching ones, that only you can turn around for my good. Amen & Amen.

We all need a loving touch...

I (sometimes hopelessly) fall in love with people. My family and friends are the most important asset I have. They encourage me to be better, challenge me, love me to a different level, cause me to think logically (Wayne says thank you), and give me more than I could ever give. Why do you think God created friendship? Well for those of you that might not believe God is a real person, has a personality, and feels our acceptance of Him as well as our rejection of Him, I would challenge you to look a little closer. When scripture speaks of God creating us in His own image, it is referring to the fact that He himself exhibits the components that He integrated into us that day in creation when He created Adam & Eve. Hello...i.e. Psalms 139. We are full of details. God wanted others around Him, that he could walk and talk with while in the garden. He is social in nature. He has been the "initiator" in a relationship with us from the very beginning. Have you ever put yourself out there to a friend and been hurt by their response or lack of one? This wasn't a fluke my friends...there was always a plan.

The very fact that God desires an "intimate" relationship with us is sometimes mind boggling to me. When I think of some of the individuals I know or know of, who I figuratively walk a "wider circle" around, I realize that I choose and pick those that I make my friends. God doesn't do that, in fact, He sent Jesus to walk this earth for the very purpose of coming even closer to us in human flesh. How's that for giving everything you've got? This has been a challenging week, to say the least, in fact, a challenging 2009 so far...and here comes Valentine's Day. I have been reading the Psalm's lately and discovering again how God, from the very beginning, planned to love on each of us. In the sermon in church on Sunday the pastor was playing a video short on "who is Jesus." The #1 answer of many is that He is God. He is purposeful in His dealings with us, and shows the human and loving character of his heart to us as He walked, talked, touched, lived and sacrificed for his friends while here on this earth.

Discovering God's character qualities are like treasures to me. With people there can be too many surprizes and disappointments sometimes when we put ourselves in vulnerable places with them. One thing I know is that God wants us to love as He loves us, and to allow Him to love others as only He can love, through us. Sometimes we are like a soft blanket, sometimes a hammer, sometimes sandpaper, but I want to always be used of Him. When we realize that our lives are most purposeful, when we live "on purpose," it's a good thing. Practice His Presence this week...and love on somebody who needs a touch from God.

“Life is short, you have to act where and when you can. When I was young, I used to want to change the world. Now, I realize, I can just change one life at a time.”