Each Friend Is A Blessing

Throughout all of my life, I have had many different friends from all different walks of life. One thing that I can sit here today and say with confidence is that it truly doesn't matter the quantity of friends that you have, but it is all about the quality of the friends that you do have.

I have the blessing of being friends with boys and girls that are younger than me, as well as men and women that are older than me. The thing that they all have in common however is, knowledge and wisdom that I don't have. Because of that, I have the privilege and honor of hearing what happens in their life but also being able to trust them enough to let them in on what is happening in my life.

Todays society tells you that the most important thing when you are in Middle School and High School is being the most popular and having the most friends. This could not be farther from the truth. Unfortunately we loose friends. Some times its because we might move to a different state, sometimes we might get into a fight and not be able to mend the cracks to restore the relationship, but other times we might just slowly grow apart. The friends that mean the most though and the friends that you fight for, they are the ones that no matter how long it might take you are determined to mend that friendship. One of my best friends, who also happens to be one of my biggest mentors, said recently that "we will make time for what we value" and that hit me hard. It is such a simple statement but is so true at the same time! If you don't value a friendship, you aren't going to make the time to be around that person.But the friendships you do value you are going to do everything you can to spend as much time with them as you can.

I have said this time and time again to all my friends, but I'm going to say it one more time because it is something that I don't think a lot of friendships or another kind of relationships remember or live out enough, no relationship should be one way. Meaning, it can't be only one person making the effort to make time for the other. In every quality friendship you are comfortable enough with that person and you can tell them the good and the bad. However, it can't be one person is always doing the talking. Both people need to give the other person time to talk about what they want to talk about. At times one person might be doing more of the talking than the other, but I look at this as an opportunity for the person listening to be there for the other person and listen to what is being said and potentially learn something that could help them in the future. In the same way though, one person can't expect to always do all the listening and never do any of the talking. Every successful relation ship is two sided. Think of it in the way of a road. If there is a one lane on a road that has cars going both ways on it, the road isn't going to stay that way for long. Either people are going to stop using that road because it is not functional and unsafe or the road is going to be altered to be more functional for cars going both ways. Now replace the cars in this analogy with two friends. One friend might walk away because they can never get a word in or because the other person never says anything in return, or the friendship gets altered so that there are equal amount of talking and listening happening.

For a season you might be more busy and not have as much time to talk with each other as you have before. This does not mean that the friendship has to be over though. If one friend spontaneously decides to move across the world to follow what they are passionate about, yes it is going to be hard to leave that relationship that has been by yourside and has helped you through countless sleepless nights but you also have to see the opportunity to grow other friendships and new friendships through this experience. The fact that we can hold onto when we are separated from each other is that no matter how much distance there might be between us, we are always together at heart. Something that blows my mind still to this day is the fact that God can be with hundreds and hundreds of people all around the world at the same time that He is with you and I. If He can do that, what would stop Him from bringing you and your best friend back together after being apart for years. I believe that each friendship is brought to life for a different reason. Some might be for one specific season of life and some might be for a life time. Those that are for a single season can be easier to let go than those that last for many years. There is a special kind of bond that very few friendships have. That is the bond of knowing that no matter how far away they might grow from each other that the other person is still there for them and is still by their side even when they might have not talked for months on end. Sometimes it is just the idea of someone still caring and being there for you that can make the hardest days a little more bearable. With thaot, I want to remind you that each and every friendship is a gift and each gift should be valued.

Yes. People get mad. Miscommunications happen. People can walk away from you for no apparent reason. You can grow apart. But that doesn't mean that we can't ever have another friend again. It simply means that there is another best friend out there for you. It means that someone is out there that is going to support you even more. It means that there is a person out there who is praying for a friend like you and that will be brought into your life at the exact time that is right for the both of you. If there is one thing that you read and remember from all this let it be this, DON'T EVER GIVE UP on someone. ESPECIALLY if it is a person that means the world to you. Keep fighting. Keep showing them the love that is inside of you. Always remind them that you are always there for them. Show them that your arms are always open and ready for a hug. Mention to them that you have two working ears that will always be willing to listen to the words that they want tell you. Forever present a shoulder that can be cried on with happy tears or tears from a broken and hurting heart. Just because you might not talk as much as you once did doesn't mean that that friendship has to be over. When this happens to me I look at it as another blessing in disguise because you both are continuing to grow and learn and become better versions of yourself. So when you do start to talk more again you both will have new knowledge to share with the other person. And thats pretty cool.

C H A L L E N G E:

I want you to evaluate all of your friendships. I hope that you can see what a special gift each of your friends are in your life. I can assure you that as soon as you look at each relationship and see what each of them have taught you. If you friends don't know that you will be there for them weather it is 3:00 AM or 3:00 PM I challenge you today to remind them that you will not leave their side no matter how far they might frift or how many miles might be between you guys. Each person you become friends with will forever and always have a special place I your heart even if you don't want them to necessarily.

A MESSAGE TO MY FRIENDS:

I am beyond grateful for each and everyone of you. I will never give up on growing our relationship stronger. I never want you to feel alone. I will always be only one call away. Each of you have taught me more than you could even know. I thank you each for helping me become who I am today and helping shape me into the person that I am today. My ears are always open and I am always here no matter what time it is or how busy we might be. I can't even put into words how incredibly different my life would be without each of you in it. I truly don't care how far apart we might be, but I want each of you to know that I am still praying for each and everyone of you every single day. You all will forever have a special place in my heart and I love you all so much. Thank you for being the incredible gifts that you are. <3