kindred spirits...bosom friends...

Friends are friends forever if the Lord is the Lord of them, and a friend will not say never cause the welcome will not end...I can still hear those words from that Michael W. Smith song. My classmates and I sang those words at our high school graduation years ago...as the song ended the tears flowed as we realized that we would not be seeing those same familiar faces as much anymore. Little did we know that facebook would reunite us all later down the road.

Yesterday, I read this really great post about friendship by Ann Voscamp. Much of her writings usually hit me in the core of my spirit, and this friendship post was one that hit hard. It listed 4 ways to be a better friend. Sometimes or should I say most of the time I fail horribly in the friend department. I have been the friend on the severed side before and I have been the friend that has done the severing before.

Everyone wants friends, close friends, the Jonathan and David, Anne Shirley and Diana Barry type of  friendships. But with that  kind of friendship there is commitment, so many times we just stop our friendship/relationship off at acquaintance and never really let anyone in, never let the walls down.  AND this day and age...we must be intentional with our friendships and relationships. AND many times, I am not. I let busy family life, or fear of rejection get in the way of making people a priority.

Anne Shirley~Diana Barry

Kindred Spirits~Bosom Friends

from one of my favorite books

Anne of Green Gables

In Voscamp's post she talked about a friendship that was severed. She wrote It doesn’t matter what you get done if you’ve undone a heart  – and there are no real accomplishments apart from relationship.

God has blessed me with lots of friends over the years, and several that have become very close dear friends over the years and God has recently blessed me with a sweet bloggy friend that I have so enjoyed getting to know. God is good...He is all about relationships!

Her post was a good one, one that hit  me between the eyes, a post that makes me want to strive to be a better friend. A posts that makes me want to drag out all the friend photos that I can find and post them, but I realize that I don't have photos of all my friends...but maybe I can drag up a few...

 Here's an 'oldie' photo with a lot of friends represented, including the hubs, he's a pretty good best friend let me tell ya! Also pictured here are Becky, a sweet college friend/band friend, dorm buddy BSU Bible study leader; Daf, we met in 5th grade, I moved away, then we reconnected in jr. college where we both were majoring in Music, and later became college roomies; Tammye friend since, high school, met in band, now she lives about an hour away, how funny we moved away from our homestate and ended up in the same state far from home, then there was Amy friends since jr. high, lived down the road from me. All sweet friends that have blessed my life.

Here's photos of more sweet friends...

Me, Carrie Ann and Melissa

We three were all walking/exercise buddies and Carrie Ann and I even walked the Peachtree Road Race a couple of years ago.

Kim. Elizabeth and me...met at church...our boys grew up together and were playmates when they were little kids and teens.

My sweet homeschool friends, Joni, Lorene, and me. They love me even when I make quirky faces.

Our fam with the Lewis fam...sweet friends who share Jesus without Fear in a far away place..and who planted a seed with us about Chinese adoption.

Here's my good friend Shannon and her best friend, Missy, they stayed up really late making this awesome sweet 16 cake for Karlie's bday.

I am so thankful for sweet friends.

Romans 12:10 Love one another with brotherly affection. Out do one another in showing honor.

These are all the friend photos I have access to on this computer. So if you're my friend, and you don't see your photo here, watch out, because I have a camera in my purse and I know how to use it!

So get ready to say

CHEESE!