Friendship...

I called it a bad word earlier today, didn't want to hear it at all... But I guess it's an alright word... It just seems so final when you're chasing after a girl and she gives you the friend card, it can hurt... But really shouldn't our truest and deepest relationships be based on Friendship. I'm sure my folks describe each other as friends, my Bro and his wife friends, my grandparents -friends. So it looks to me as if friendship is more of a determining factor than dating... Heck with dating you're trying to impress the person still, you're giving this not entirely true sense of who you are, you're not exactly yourself. But when are we ourselves, I'd say when we're hanging out with friends, and when the friendship is deepened to a relationship it doesn't necessarily mean a romantic relationship... It just means that those two people in the friendship/relationship are there for each other no matter what, and I guess if that's a relationship, then I'm in well, it's gonna take a while to count it all out. I must be in 7 or 8 relationships, maybe more, but really what started out in all of those, friendship (okay all except one, which was a date and then we quickly went into friendship for reasons beyond my control)... This overwhelming theme in any of my true relationships is friendship. I'd say I have a relationship with many people, in Chico, back home, God willing I'll cultivate friendships and hopefully relationships in Palo Alto this summer.

So if there's friendship, that's the person you see every once in a while you like being with them and talking with them, and what not; but after a while when you are able to go (grow) deeper in your conversations, your understanding, your random hangout times, when you know you can call that person out on something they're not doing right, and totally would be alright with them doing the same to you. You can't force a romantic relationship, and really you can't force a true relationship. But honestly we should all strive to be not just another friend. Of course we fail sometimes, but truly being sorry about those times that we struggle, and fight, and fail. When we can't be there for a friend, that is when we must try harder...

I had a few friends over for dinner tonight, and after most of them left, one of them had stayed and we talked for a little bit... I like her and it's plain obvious, but by listening to her as a friend, and hearing her honest request for just a friendship. The word wasn't such a dirty word anymore... All it takes is time to develop a relationship from a friendship, and really honestly a friendly relationship is at least ten times more rewarding than something that is strictly romantic...

Now I'm not saying that there's no place for romance, or whatever, I'm just saying that we should be content with what we have. And that if it's God's will to change something it'll happen (another thing on that though is we have to be willing to hear God, because when he has to hit you with a 2x4 it ain't gonna be pretty, but if we can catch the whisper, it'll be that much better)... How many of you have prayed for guidance from God today? In the past week? Month? Year? How about prayed earnestly for someone else in your life? Did you pray for a romantic relationship and wonder why it didn't work? (I have) What if we prayed for a friendship? What if that was the goal? A relationship, based upon friendship... That to me is an amazing thought... I feel as if we're too busy searching for that next romance, or that next car, job, degree... And sometimes we're dreading as we search for those things, too busy focusing on the end, the next birthday, death... Then to focus on the journey with Christ and our friends, the relationships developed with those friends, and how/what our hearts are truly focused on.

So instead of listing prayers tonight, I'm going to ask you a couple of questions and suggest you think on those for prayers tonight:

• Did anyone tell you they weren't doing well today? Pray for them
• Did anyone seem to really care about you today? Pray for them
• Where was your heart today? Pray for it
• Where is God leading you? Pray for guidance
• Was there someone who could have cared less about you? Pray for them

One of my favorite ways to read the Bible is to sit down, close my eyes, and open to a random page and read what I find, amazingly enough almost every time I do that I find something so wonderfully comforting, sometimes, an awesome challenge. But EVERY single time I open it up like that I know I'm loved if not by anyone on Earth, by God in heaven, and honestly Earthly love or Heavenly love... I'm down for the Heavenly love any day of the week...