Friendships

On Thursdays, I am going to share with you information that has caught my attention in weekly reading that I do. From the picture above, you may think I have been reading Pooh, which is a possibility with my 3 year old ... but it is not.

One of the books that I have been reading is Risking Church: Creating a Place Where Your Heart Feels At Home by Jim Kallam Jr.

In the book, he has this statement that resonates in my heart: My heart longs for friendships that are lasting and friendships where love expressed is the prominent feature.

Individuals all around us are looking for this community. They are looking for relationships and friendships that last and love. I yearn for it and as I look at my relationships, there is no one that I can point to and go --- they are that good friend.

At times, I am envious of my wife. She has some really close friends, even though they are not in our town. As, I look at my current context, there are a few individuals who I think that I may have the ability to have this type of relationship -- time will tell.

Later on in the book, Kallam says: " Friendship requires the ability to see a friend at his or her worst and look beyond all that is ugly to what could be. It's standing with someone in the darkest of nights and allowing the light of Christ to pierce that darkness ".

The path of friendship isn't always a smooth, gentle walk. It is often messy. I pray that in 2007 that I will begin to develop a true friendship.