Friends!

First, my apologies! I had a write up ready to post and blogger was down both Thursday and Friday before I left for my weekend. Therefore, it has been almost a week since you have read anything new here. Not my intention, so, please forgive me.

That being said, I am going in a completely different direction than my original post. I can change my mind…I am a woman!

This weekend I was blessed to be able to spend time with some absolutely great women, women who encouraged me, prayed for me, and laughed till it hurt with me.

It all started on Friday night at our favorite restaurant in Janesville, WI, Cozumel. If you can handle the spicy stuff…get the Camerones en la Chipotle. Fabulous!

I met Marlene and Dee there at 6:30 and we were extremely bad patrons…we sat and laughed for three hours. It simply could not be helped! I cannot remember the last time we had a chance to sit, talk and laugh! I love my friends. I love our time together. I love that miles and miles separate us, but when we are together nothing has changed. We still are there for one another; we still love one another.

On Saturday afternoon, I delivered a message to approximately 50 ladies. In my message, one of the things I talked about was lifting each other up…being a Ruth to one another, as Ruth was to Naomi. Ruth literally means a friend that sticks closer than a brother.

Sunday afternoon, after spending a couple of hours with yet another friend at Starbucks, I began my three-hour drive home. I began thinking about my relationships with my friends. I am blessed beyond measure that I have many, many ladies that I call true friends. My question to myself was…Am I a friend that sticks closer than a brother? Do I pray for my friends? Am I there when my friends are in need? Am I compassionate? Am I truthful? Do I share my heart and trust them with my pain? Do I give as much as I get from them? Am I to be trusted? Can I keep a confidence? Am I fun to be around…yet serious when the need arrives?

Being truthful with myself, I had to say I do not pray for my friends as much as I should. I realized that sometimes, hurts were hidden and I was not there for them, as they might have needed me to be. My heart was heavy.

Distance can be a four-letter word. I have let time and space create a gap in my relationships. I have come to the realization I need to become proactive in my long distance friendships. I do not want chasms to separate my friends and I. While I love the social networking benefits of facebook and twitter for being an author promoting my work, I hate the fact that I am able to maintain a superficial connection with my friends; friends who need me in a deeper way than a simple status update.

Ruth was an encourager, she was a helper, she listened, she acted and she trusted. She stuck with her friend through thick and thin, never giving up on her and never letting her down. She walked through the toughest times with her and experienced her pain. She laughed with her on the mountaintops of life, and loved with her through everything.

How about you? Are you a Ruth?