Tuesday, August 11, 2009

What About Your Friends

Proverbs 18:25
A man that hath friends must shew himself friendly:and there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother.

My mother drilled into me at a young age, "be careful who you call friend, the ones closest to you can hurt you the most." Over time I've come to understand what that truly means. Not everyone you call friend will be a friend to you. In my life I've encountered many people that well deserve the title and others who did not. It wasn't until I was older that I became careful not to misuse the word "friend." The term friend means different things to different people. Some consider a friend to be the go to, down-for-whatever party goer. Others view a friend as a lunch buddy they hang out with at work. Then there are those people who see a friend as someone to bail them out of trouble or hook them up with perks. In fact a friend is much more than that.

As women, we tend to form a stronger emotional bond to the people around us. Therefore, our friendships often go deeper than just social gatherings and clothes swapping. The people I've called "friend,"commonly ended up being more like family. Those that I consider to be true friends, even now, are my family. These are women who challenge me to move forward in pursuing my dreams; setting fear aside. Women who have prayed with me at some of the lowest points in my life. Women who will put me in my place or tell me when I am dead wrong; not out of malice but because they know the type of person I am trying to be. Women who know when something is wrong without saying a word and have the wherewithal to offer a word of encouragement. All of these things and more are what friendship is about.

We sometimes find ourselves in a place of life re-evaluation. The things that used to work in high school or college don't any more. And unfortunately some of the friendships we've forged are casualties of change; for good and bad. Like an email I once read stated; "People come into your life for a reason, a season, or a lifetime." I challenge you all to take a long look at yourself and those around you and ask; "which one am I?"

Friendship is a gift; enjoy it and cherish it while you have it!

1 comment:

changingfaces said...

Hey Ladies,
Ty this message is SO on point. I have been feeling down lately. I feel bad for feeling this way because I am so blessed. God is so good. BUT I am here by myself. I have no family, and my closes friends do not live here. My friends that do live here have their own families to worry about.
Sometimes I feel as though I am always there for everyone else and no one realizes that I have emotions and I get down. But then I am reminded in emails like this that I do have friends that love me and are here for me.
I guess my point is, we have to remember that we as girlfriends are here for one another and we do love each other. We have put down our pride and let each other know when we need someone to listen to us. That is what is special about women and what we can offer each other.
So in closing for those of you on this blog that are my sisters please know that I love you dearly and thank God for you being in my life.