Monday, May 30, 2011

Investing in the *Real*

I came really close to not marrying the man who I married.

I almost caused us not to get married.

And I almost made it so I didn't have this friend.

God stepped in.  

He knew what He was doing and He allowed these relationships in my life. He invited me to cultivate them.

There are times when I don't do a good job at investing in cultivating these relationships, but He gave me a passion for these two people – my dear friend and my wonderful groom. It's deep inside me to love them.

It wasn't me. It isn't me. It is God who placed this desire deep inside me for these two people.

I'm thinking today about what we work hard at. I think the reason we get all anxious-like and afraid about friendship - especially with women - is because maybe we don't think about the time it takes to cultivate a relationship.

We're too busy shuffling our kids around and in between the busyness is judgment and fear. We make quick judgments about each other and we worry about what {she} will think.

If we were to stop with the drive-thru-wave and take time to really invest in the relationship - really cultivate it - we would see the real in all of us.

It takes time to be real

Thank you, Father, for all you've done in us, and for what you have in store for us...

I asked my dear friend, if she would help me write a series on friendship and grace - telling our story. We agreed together that there is a message people need to hear now - in small bites of food - to nourish their soul, encourage and give hope. God led our story-telling of His grace in our friendship.

Rich blessings for your own friendships...

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Gratitude for Unwrapped *Gifts* of {Grace}...

...sharing struggles of parenting with a friend who reminds me I am not alone...

...seeing how we change through the journey of parenting...

...an opportunity to encourage and be encouraged in marriage...

...a good friend to inspire risk-taking...

...a vision of a future with my best friend, continuing to walk with me through life's journey's...



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This is the final post our story of friendship and grace.  

To read all of the posts, follow them in order below: 

1 comment:

  1. That is very convicting! A great reminder to me that relationships do take work. If we don't have the desire to yearn for something that we should, God can provide us with that and bloom it into something even more then we expected or hoped for. Thank you!

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