What a Good Friend Is

What a good friend means is hard to describe, and yet, at the same time it is so easy. A good friend is a person who will be loyal and true. A good friend means somebody who loves you more than he loves himself. We were all made to be good friends to people, but the choice is ours. If you want to, here is Happiness. If you want to, here is Joy. You might think your life is yours, but it's not. Your life is God's, so spend it wisely. The minute you choose, the second to loose, you've lost a year. So friend, don't waste your time here!

Confidence of Heaven, but Humility of It's King

This is something I strive for. Often it is hard to know how to ask things of God, but not be presumptuous and yet believe God will answer your prayers. I find my favorite time with God is actually just talking with Him(praying), telling Him all my troubles and joys, and then writing down His response so I can to back and re-read it. God reads our hearts, and He knows just what to say. The amazing thing is, everything God says is still good for eternity a lifetime later! What a God! And prayer really isn't just a message that's sent up to God; He's much more personal than that. We often forget that He's always right beside us.

God's love is enough...enough for everything. It is so deep and vast, we'll be learning about it for as long as we live!! I can't begin to say enough good thinsg about God. And as I grow older, my relationship with Him grows deeper, I understand more of Him, and I have to learn to trust more too. Some of my friends and I were talking recently about how it's terrifying, but there's nothing more thrilling than when God asks you to go out on a limb for Him! It's frightening, but once you finally get up the courage to do what He's asked, you want to do it again and again. It's like a good medicine, or the sweetest smell you've ever smelled. It can't be described accurately with words, and we can only touch on the things of God like a feather is blown away in the wind and swallowed up in it's force.

Reality!

Seeing reality is when you look back at the path you have walked, and you see two sets of footprints. And at that single incredible moment, you realize He's been right there all along walking right beside you. You're not alone! God...He's there at your times of agony and joy when you need someone who cares. Then, the indescribable becomes a living reality! Just like the falling leaves have their time and colors, so we of much more importance are seen by God every moment we live, and remembered by Him forever even after we die.

Life...

As we grow older, we learn more and more...I know I have learned a whole ton over the last two years! God is so good, and every time I observe nature, people around me, and what He's done for me my vision of Who He is increases. I love it how we think we understand things and then God opens another window entirely new to us!!!! What if each day we woke up in the morning and made sure God had our hearts completely? What a difference that would make in life! That is something I'm trying to do in mine.

New adventures come and go, God is always there and always will be. No matter what life throws in our faces, we can overcome it through our sure Defender. "As far as the east is from the west, so far hath He removed our transgressions from us." I can't wait for what God will do in my life! Can you?

Forever a Family

Recently, we got back from WA FCM. It was a new experience for me, and certainly a great blessing!! As we drove there, I wondered what it would be like...what would it be like to meet and spend time with my good friends? What would the meetings that were to be held be like? All my questions were answered. I think that when God is in control of your life, everything changes...becomes different. I'm beginning to realize just how far that goes in my life and experiences. People are very special to me. Whether I live close to my friends or not, whether I can see a clear picture of them in my mind, it doesn't matter. What really matters is this, that I never loose sight of their characters....of the wonderful people God is making and what He is doing in their lives. This is what will last, even after they have died like my dear friend Heather Snyder.

When God is near, everything becomes more beautiful, more meaningful. Life, even with it's bumps, becomes a joy. Through sunshine or rain, through loss or gain. . . .God is still there. That is a very comforting thought. And it's so true; we just have to have faith to believe it. What I wanted to go back home with after Camp Meeting was a better understanding of God, of how He wanted me to live my life, of how I could know Him better, of how I could be a better friend, sister, daughter. And simply, just the realization of how good God is, and of the amazing complexity of my friends or family, human beings with awesome minds that even the greatest people are still trying to figure out--the human mind is still vastly a mystery to many great people--. If I can learn important things that will help direct my life now, I will have an even better life as I get older.....

At the end of WA FCM, on Sunday after the meeting, it was very special how they had everyone in the building make a giant circle and sing "We are a Family". And it's true! We ARE a family! And someday, I look forward to never having to say good-bye ever again...