This post is dedicated to my dear, best friend Gloria, who celebrated her birthday yesterday! You are a jewel in God's crown of lovely people that reflect Him and the love He desires to show through us! Thank you for being an ever-present help, comfort and joy in my life! I'm grateful for you and wish you blessings beyond your imagination! Happy birthday girlfriend.
True friends make us better friends. Dee
What is a best friend? It's such a touchy subject since it implies that someone else does not hold that title. I have many friends around the country that I can say our my dear friends, and by dear friends I mean they are fused to me in a way that we are one in matters of the heart. I think "best friends" are just people who hold that same affection and bond but they are physically close in proximity and are intimately involved in each others lives. Sure, it's easier to manage a friendship when you're not around one another constantly, and of course distance doesn't diminish the depth of a relationship but it can protect the fragile harmony that needs to be at its core. But, to be interwoven in a friends life on a daily basis, working and playing closely, well, that's a balancing act that deserves respect and a special title. I have a best friend who lives right around the corner from me and our friendship has gone into the sacred ground of sisterhood. I share this sisterhood with few others and it is a bond that can not be broken. When you become sisters, all the non-sense is no longer applicable because forgiveness and mercy reign above it all. There no longer remains an option for separation because you are now family, and I grew up that no matter what, family always forgives, loves, tolerates if necessary and stays connected. It is a blessing that I consider an honor and a privilege and I believe that not many are blessed with such a treasure.
I know that if I needed one of my dear friends they would come and be by my side in an instant. One of my dear friends knew of a need with one of her sisters and off she went to be a blessing to her. There were no ifs, ands or buts about it, she ran to comfort and serve. I had a dear friend that when we were younger, she would get to my house no matter what, rain, snow, sleet or shine (before we had our driver's license or own car), to be at my side and I know she would do it again for me now. Jesus is my dear friend, and He has been with me in Spirit through thick and thin. My Pastor once said that kind people are "Jesus with skin on" and that is so true. Our purpose is to show and share God's love to the weak, the suffering, the lonely, the sick and those in need. My daughter-in-law brought warm fluffy socks straight from the dryer and put them on my feet one time when I was ill and my sister-in-law in New York, called a grocery store near my house in California and placed an order for food and necessities to be delivered to me. Those are examples of being the hands and feet of Christ!
Another time, a kind woman comforted me and prayed over me as I was waiting for a prescription. I was so sick with fever yet she asserted herself to be "Jesus with skin on" to care for a stranger. Was she a dear friend or a best friend? At that moment she was and in my memories she is. My best friend has been there for me through acts of service and love. She has run errands for me, ran errands with me, brought me soup, treats and thoughtful gifts. She has crawled into bed with me when I was curled up in a ball of pain, sat with me and kept me company, made me laugh, held me when I cried, listened when I needed to vent and spoke truthfully to me when I needed an attitude adjustment. She has taken care of my house, my dogs, fluffed my pillows and massaged my hands when they were spasming. We have worked together, brain-stormed, dreamed and traveled. We also have vowed and kept the vow that we would always go to each other with complaints about the other one rather than talk behind each others backs. We argue like sisters and pick on each other but never feel threatened that it will destroy our bond because sisters don't break up.
I have these same compliments toward my son, who was always there for me when he was growing up. He would come to my bedside and tell me stories that would make me laugh when all I wanted to do was cry. He would bring me his "famous" breakfast and sit and listen to me when I was lonely, open my curtains and encourage me to get up and move a little. And then there's my husband who is amazing with all his acts of service and thoughtful gestures. He works in the gap that I can't fill at times and keeps everything going. I also have my sister that actually feels the pain and sorrow of those hurting around her. She checks in on me constantly and truly cares about how I'm doing. She drives an hour to come up here and spend the night or day with me when my loneliness becomes too unbearable and I need a sister-friend. There are dear ones that send me cards (which I love) and remind me that I'm thought about and loved and also other precious friends that I know are willing and able to help me if I called, yet, they respect that I need a lot of rest and they trust me that I will reach out to them if I'm in need.
I can look upon my life and recall hundreds of times when dear friends blessed me. God brought certain ones at just the right times so their special gifts were exactly what I needed in that particular season of my life. My old neighbor would bring me dinners when my husband worked out of town for awhile and she would hold me like a mom would when I needed a mommies touch (even though she wasn't old enough to be my mom :). My friend who rented our guest house was "Jesus with skin on" for me when she came at a time where her wisdom was the greatest blessing and she also became a sister to my son through her stay. Jesus came to me with skin on through a friend years ago, who was my sons daycare owner and her tenacity and strong faith put up with me and my anger and doubts toward God as she relentlessly reminded me that God loved me and I was just blind to it right then. And the time my other sister simply laid next to me quietly after my surgery.
It goes on and on to the heavens and back of all the dear friends and their acts of love and service toward me. They all brought a part of themselves that became a part of me, until I finally became a reflection of God's love and was able to go and be a blessing to others. Every act of kindness I extend is something I learned from one of my "dear friends." We are born with certain personalities, temperaments and gifts but the refining of them is from God, and He works many times through other peoples actions. We learn how we want to be and many times what we don't want to be from the way people behave. We are all students and teachers who through teachable hearts can make profound differences in the lives of others. So, whether they be your husband, son, daughter, sister, brother, friend, mom, stranger, acquaintance.......they are Jesus with skin on, and so are you. Live and love accordingly....... because someone is always learning something from the way you live your life.
This is for all my family and friends that don't live just around the corner.
True friends make us better friends. Dee
What is a best friend? It's such a touchy subject since it implies that someone else does not hold that title. I have many friends around the country that I can say our my dear friends, and by dear friends I mean they are fused to me in a way that we are one in matters of the heart. I think "best friends" are just people who hold that same affection and bond but they are physically close in proximity and are intimately involved in each others lives. Sure, it's easier to manage a friendship when you're not around one another constantly, and of course distance doesn't diminish the depth of a relationship but it can protect the fragile harmony that needs to be at its core. But, to be interwoven in a friends life on a daily basis, working and playing closely, well, that's a balancing act that deserves respect and a special title. I have a best friend who lives right around the corner from me and our friendship has gone into the sacred ground of sisterhood. I share this sisterhood with few others and it is a bond that can not be broken. When you become sisters, all the non-sense is no longer applicable because forgiveness and mercy reign above it all. There no longer remains an option for separation because you are now family, and I grew up that no matter what, family always forgives, loves, tolerates if necessary and stays connected. It is a blessing that I consider an honor and a privilege and I believe that not many are blessed with such a treasure.
I know that if I needed one of my dear friends they would come and be by my side in an instant. One of my dear friends knew of a need with one of her sisters and off she went to be a blessing to her. There were no ifs, ands or buts about it, she ran to comfort and serve. I had a dear friend that when we were younger, she would get to my house no matter what, rain, snow, sleet or shine (before we had our driver's license or own car), to be at my side and I know she would do it again for me now. Jesus is my dear friend, and He has been with me in Spirit through thick and thin. My Pastor once said that kind people are "Jesus with skin on" and that is so true. Our purpose is to show and share God's love to the weak, the suffering, the lonely, the sick and those in need. My daughter-in-law brought warm fluffy socks straight from the dryer and put them on my feet one time when I was ill and my sister-in-law in New York, called a grocery store near my house in California and placed an order for food and necessities to be delivered to me. Those are examples of being the hands and feet of Christ!
Another time, a kind woman comforted me and prayed over me as I was waiting for a prescription. I was so sick with fever yet she asserted herself to be "Jesus with skin on" to care for a stranger. Was she a dear friend or a best friend? At that moment she was and in my memories she is. My best friend has been there for me through acts of service and love. She has run errands for me, ran errands with me, brought me soup, treats and thoughtful gifts. She has crawled into bed with me when I was curled up in a ball of pain, sat with me and kept me company, made me laugh, held me when I cried, listened when I needed to vent and spoke truthfully to me when I needed an attitude adjustment. She has taken care of my house, my dogs, fluffed my pillows and massaged my hands when they were spasming. We have worked together, brain-stormed, dreamed and traveled. We also have vowed and kept the vow that we would always go to each other with complaints about the other one rather than talk behind each others backs. We argue like sisters and pick on each other but never feel threatened that it will destroy our bond because sisters don't break up.
I have these same compliments toward my son, who was always there for me when he was growing up. He would come to my bedside and tell me stories that would make me laugh when all I wanted to do was cry. He would bring me his "famous" breakfast and sit and listen to me when I was lonely, open my curtains and encourage me to get up and move a little. And then there's my husband who is amazing with all his acts of service and thoughtful gestures. He works in the gap that I can't fill at times and keeps everything going. I also have my sister that actually feels the pain and sorrow of those hurting around her. She checks in on me constantly and truly cares about how I'm doing. She drives an hour to come up here and spend the night or day with me when my loneliness becomes too unbearable and I need a sister-friend. There are dear ones that send me cards (which I love) and remind me that I'm thought about and loved and also other precious friends that I know are willing and able to help me if I called, yet, they respect that I need a lot of rest and they trust me that I will reach out to them if I'm in need.
I can look upon my life and recall hundreds of times when dear friends blessed me. God brought certain ones at just the right times so their special gifts were exactly what I needed in that particular season of my life. My old neighbor would bring me dinners when my husband worked out of town for awhile and she would hold me like a mom would when I needed a mommies touch (even though she wasn't old enough to be my mom :). My friend who rented our guest house was "Jesus with skin on" for me when she came at a time where her wisdom was the greatest blessing and she also became a sister to my son through her stay. Jesus came to me with skin on through a friend years ago, who was my sons daycare owner and her tenacity and strong faith put up with me and my anger and doubts toward God as she relentlessly reminded me that God loved me and I was just blind to it right then. And the time my other sister simply laid next to me quietly after my surgery.
It goes on and on to the heavens and back of all the dear friends and their acts of love and service toward me. They all brought a part of themselves that became a part of me, until I finally became a reflection of God's love and was able to go and be a blessing to others. Every act of kindness I extend is something I learned from one of my "dear friends." We are born with certain personalities, temperaments and gifts but the refining of them is from God, and He works many times through other peoples actions. We learn how we want to be and many times what we don't want to be from the way people behave. We are all students and teachers who through teachable hearts can make profound differences in the lives of others. So, whether they be your husband, son, daughter, sister, brother, friend, mom, stranger, acquaintance.......they are Jesus with skin on, and so are you. Live and love accordingly....... because someone is always learning something from the way you live your life.
This is for all my family and friends that don't live just around the corner.
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