When you come to your friend Jesus and rest in him, you’ll hear God’s comforting whispers. Amazing.
Jesus says “Come.” When you come and rest in him, wonderful things happen. Your jitters flutter away. Sadness lifts. Irritability takes a hike.
Then you can hear God’s whispers. For me this passage describes it best:
The LORD said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by.”
Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind.
After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake.
After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire.
And after the fire came a gentle whisper.” (1 Kings 19:11-13)
The prophet Elijah heard God’s whispers. You can too. God speaks words of comfort and love. They encourage, not condemn. Words like:
“You are my Beloved.”
“You are mine. Always. For keeps.”
“In me you are safe.”
“You are precious, my daughter.”
“I cannot love you any less or any more. I am love.”
“Well done.”
Have you heard God’s whispers of love recently? Find a quiet place and quiet your mind. (Lots of noise between your pierced ears, right?!) Talk to the Lord, your very best friend.
Then listen.
“I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.” John 15:15
How does God speak to you? Have you heard His voice lately?
P.S. If you still have trouble hearing His whisper, please contact me and I’ll write you back with extra helps.
Change is hard, including changes in friendships. You and I CAN make friends with change. God empowers us to do hard.
“Blue? NO WAY!” I spilled more M‘n’Ms into my hand.
Among the usual bunch — red, green, brown, orange, yellow (especially cheerful yellow) — huddled blue intruders, pretending they belong. They didn’t.
“Oh. . .no! What happened to tan?”
I checked the bag again.
Gone!
I counted on him. Not showoff-y but steady. Like my plump, beige cat.
As crazy as it sounds, when Mars changed the color lineup of its meltinyourmouth, notinyourhand candies many years ago, my safe little world got ugly. My problem with the new and not improved M‘n’Ms had little to do with food dyes but what the color switch-a-roo symbolized: change. Change was not my friend. It still isn’t.
I don’t do change well. Who does?
Some examples:
A parents’ divorce — “Whom do I live with? Is it okay to miss my dad? To love him? I’m confused. Am I a bad girl?”
The new kid at school — “Will the other kids like me? Why did my parents do this to me THREE TIMES in middle school? Are they insane? I feel left out?”
A new baby — “I love my little Laura, but why does she cry so much? Am I a horrible mom? The other moms make this look easy. What’s wrong with me?”
Depression or anxiety hits a loved one — “Whoa! God, I cannot count on this person as I had. When should I comfort? When should I get outside help? Why? Why? Why? Why did you allow this?”
A friend moves — “I miss her bad. I know we can keep up through email and texting, but I miss sharing coffee together in person. I feel lonely.”
Change is crazy-hard. Even good change.
I’m learning to roll with change and with changes in friendships.
By the way, I still pick out the blue M’n’Ms before munching. Pesky intruders.
A Friendly Question: Have you made friends with change? Or with friendships that change?
Do you have a best girlfriend? What are two or three qualities that make her a best friend?
If you’re married, chances are your dearest friend is your husband. But like single women, married women typically need a special girlfriend to whom they can confide their inmost soul. What about you? Do you have a special “best” girlfriend? What are two or three qualities that make her a best friend?
If you have a moment, please share a few thoughts on how you found a best friend.
I am working on an eBook on developing great, godly friendships among women and would greatly appreciate your input. Leave your thoughts in Comments or send me a contact message. Thank you!
You Are Blessed BIG!
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On the outside, Marianne seemed okay. A caring husband, two girls, vibrant and busy in an under-four-kind-of-way, and a master’s in education. Inside she hurt terribly. Do you have a friend who’s hurting?
Here are 3 steps to help her.
It is spiritual CPR: Care, Prayer and Repair.
1. Care
Once you suspect that your friend is hurting, stop. This is what the Good Samaritan did (Luke 10:30-37). You remember the story. On the road to Jericho, a man was beaten by robbers and left for dead. A priest saw him and walked on by. So did the next Jew. When a Samaritan (considered a despicable “half-breed” to Jews) saw him, he stopped and helped.
Next meet her immediate needs. Does she need groceries or diapers for her baby? Could she use a ride to a doctor’s appointment? What about help figuring out which bill to pay next? Most important, listen to her pain. Listening is essential. As she talks and you listen, her healing will begin. But listening is only the beginning.
2. Prayer
Ask Jesus for wisdom concerning your next steps. The Holy Spirit will guide you. Believe this. He wants you to experience his peace. Jesus wants to help your hurting friend. Prayer is your lifeline to God and to your hurting friend.
“I am leaving you with a gift — peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid” (John 14:27 NLT).
3. Repair
You’ve met your hurting friend’s immediate needs and have prayed for her; now identify her deeper pain. When I asked Marianne what troubled her, she first said that she missed being in the workplace. She talked and I listened — a lot. I learned she had two major life transitions: she was newer to our community and she had left a job she loved. We talked many more times. Once she realized that these transitions — and her fear of rejection — had led to her sadness, she stopped fretting. She joined a moms’ group at church and contributed her gifts of leadership and drama.
God had not abandoned her as she feared. He brought friends into her life and provided her hope in Jesus’ care.
A Friendship Question: What is one thing you can do today to help a hurting friend? A phone call? An e-card?
Psst. . .Did you see yesterday’s post on finding JOY from a senior saint? You can read it here.
Friendship is medicine for the soul. . .especially the joy of a senior saint, poured out in love.
Each Friday the mismatched “Women of Grace” gather at a local bookstore. We are a single mom, a couple of grandmas, a newly married, a senior saint (and now a great grandma) and me.
Together we read The Friendships of Women by Dee Brestin and talk and laugh and laugh some more.
Between sips of cafe mocha and iced tea. Of course.
May I introduce to you Vivian, a senior saint of 80-plus years and the epitome of joy? Quietjoy.
Besides joy, the word that best describes Vivian is patient.
I asked her for own descriptors. She selected teacher and. . .hold onto your chair. . .impulsive shopper.
“What are typical impulsive purchases?” I asked. “Cookies? Blouses?”
“Oh, just about anything,” she replied.
“Really?”
“Really.”
Born in 1928, Vivian lived during the Great Depression when her dad made 15 cents an hour as a car mechanic. On Saturday evenings the family of five dined on pancakes in their Chicago apartment near Wrigley field and felt blessed. I asked her advice to people in today’s economic downturn: “Take whatever job is out there. During the Great Depression years, there was next to nothing, not even a job at a place like Walmart.”
In the crucible of difficulty Vivian learned God-dependent joy.
Especially in pain, daily physical pain.
Born without hip sockets, Vivian endured several hip surgeries as well as many other surgeries over the decades — 20, at last count — from gallbladder and appendix to hammertoes and a hysterectomy. While Vivian would love to ice skate again and climb Masada, an archeological treasure in Israel, she makes due with her walker. Life grows dark in loneliness at times without her best friend and farmer husband, Hardin. He passed away in December.
Nowadays she keeps up with family on Facebook — three children, several grandkids, and a granddaughter — and designs portraits of people from small squares of fabric. Think mosaic. (The photo above is an example. Cool, huh?)
She also has us, the mismatched “Women of Grace,” sitting at her side, drawing in her
wisdom,
humor,
and joy. . .simply, “Lord, I belong to you.
(BTW, I think she may consider her Nook purchase as proof of her impulsive shopping. It took her two weeks to decide 🙂 )
Truly friends are medicine for the soul.
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Psst. . .Did you read Day 18 of my series 31 Days of Friendship? It’s titled “Unlikely Friends.” Meet Bella and Tara.Click here to meet them.
When you come to your friend Jesus and rest in him, you’ll hear God’s comforting whispers. Amazing.
