Friends who lift us…

When we last spoke, I told you about with something I had to deal with as this slow fade started in my life. Today I wanted to take a moment from that story, call it a “one off” this week. I want to take this path because this week I had some folks reach out to me who were a big part of my growing up, and it was so nice to hear from them.

​Growing up, I had many cousins and family members with whom I spent time, but two of the most important people I spent time with were not family. These were my best friends, and you could say my chosen family. Both guys played a significant role in my life. Let’s call them J and R.

This week, I had been struggling a bit with frustrations and growing anxiety of everyday life, when I received a text message with a couple of pictures. Seems that J was looking through some old pictures and found one of us all as teenagers. We were no doubt up to no good. You could tell just by the smiles on our faces. The memories came flooding back, and a smile crept across my face. The frustrations seemed to be small at that point, which they probably were anyway. The pictures started a long text thread between the three of us, and all of the security of being 15 again came back.

No one feels secure or safe at 15; I mean, high schoolers can be ruthless. Oh, and I was chubby. Easy target. 

What I mean is that I always felt good when we were all together. J and R always had my back. I was always willing to try new things and do something a bit more fearful when they were there. Sometimes that was a negative, and you end up running around in the snow in your skibbies, but that is a story that doesn’t fit here. HA.  Even when I moved south to start a new life, they made me feel comfortable and told me that it was going to be great. When my car broke down, and I was BROKE, J traveled 10 hours to help me replace an alternator.  They were always there for me, and I tried to always be there for them.

As we grew older, we would stay in touch, but it became less and less. With the busyness of kids and life, we talked more like 3 or 4 times a year, rather than daily or weekly. When we did, as we did this week, it was right back to those times when we were always together.  When I was getting married, I simply had to call, and they both came for the wedding and stood with me as I married the love of my life.  When either of them had issues in life, we would talk for hours to help them move through the troubles.

God knew I needed to hear their voice (even when it was just a text). He knew I needed that lift up. He knew I needed to pick my head up. I didn’t tell them about this blog. In fact, I haven’t told anyone about this blog. This is between you and me, but I needed you to know about them.

I needed you to know the story because when my world fell apart, the people that God put in my life who made me feel calm showed up. Talking to them about the issues my life has faced is hard. It is actually still hard. Typing this out is very hard, but God gave me the people and strength to walk through it to tell you this story.  I have added another J, B, and M to my story, and I thank God for them. Adding these good-hearted people to my Wife, Son, and daughter-in-law makes me strong.

I write this “one off” to ask you, who are your people? When was the last time you spoke to them? Are you letting a worldly argument stand between you and the people that God put in your life to help you through those moments?  Everyone has arguments. We did. Forgive them. They are too important.

Sometimes life feels so heavy that we can’t carry it anymore. In those moments, remember that God didn’t want us to live this life alone. He gave us people to help carry our burdens, and most of all, he gave us his Son.

Ask for help! He and they are waiting and ready to listen.

Talk again soon….