[Faith-talk] FW: [thefamilyoffaith] When Friendship is Tough | Encouragement For Today | Proverbs 31 Ministries

[Eric Calhoun]

I can relate to this one!


Original Message: 
From: "thefamilyoffaith" <TheFamilyofFaith at tampabay.rr.com>
To: <thefamilyoffaith at yahoogroups.com>,
<INTERCESSORS-ALLNATIONS at yahoogroups.com>,
<dfpprayerwarriors at suddenlink.net>, <unitedprayermail at aol.com>,
<CcHhEeSsTtEeRr at yahoogroups.com>
Subject: [thefamilyoffaith] When Friendship is Tough | Encouragement For
Today | Proverbs  31 Ministries
Date: 
Tue, 17 Apr 2012 08:40:49 -0400

When Friendship is Tough | Encouragement For Today | Proverbs 31
Ministries


                   
                 
                 
           
     
        
                  April 17, 2012

                        When Friendship is Tough

                        By Lysa TerKeurst  

                  "Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing
with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit
through the bond of peace." Ephesians 4:2-3 (NIV)

                  One of the wisest pieces of advice on friendship I ever
got was from one of my daughters. She was in middle school at the time. You
know that awkward place where insecurities run rampant, hormones rage, and
your best friend one day becomes your worst enemy the next? So lovely.

                  She got in the car one day with tears filling her eyes.
She waited until we pulled out of the school parking lot to let all her
hurt leak down her cheeks.

                  "Rough day?" I asked.

                  "Awful," she replied.

                  I turned down the radio, waited until we were at a red
light, and reached for her hand. "Wanna talk about it?"

                  "Nope," she whispered as she turned her face away from
me toward the window. The rest of the night she sulked around the house.
And no matter how many times I tried to get her to talk, this normally very
vocal child wouldn't open up.

                  The next morning, I was surprised when she bounded down
the stairs with a smile on her face.

                  "Well hey! You sure look happy this morning," I said as
I lifted up quick thank you prayers to God for whatever had brought back
the sunshine to my girl's life.

                  "Mom," she said with great authority, "I've decided
something about friends. They all have good stuff and bad stuff. Things you
like and things that really annoy you. So, you just have to decide if you
can handle their package deal."

                  How wise. How true.

                  Friends are a package deal. And sadly, not all
friendships will stand the test of time. Some friendships are for a season.

                  But other times, we have to be willing to deal with the
messy stuff to fight for our friendships.

                  Recently, I had something hard happen with a friend I
dearly love and greatly respect. A misunderstanding. Hurt feelings.
Frustration.

                  Part of me wanted to distance myself because it was
hard to sift through the hurt. But as I prayed through it, I had to remind
myself this person is a package deal. Part of what makes them a great
friend that I love being around is their tenacity and passion to accomplish
tasks with excellence. But because they are so task oriented, they are less
relationally sensitive.

                  And if I'm honest with myself, I can see that I'm a
package deal too. With good stuff. And annoying stuff.

                  They have issues. I have issues.

                  We're both messy people, willing to work on our
not-so-fun stuff, who are fully aware we're going to hit some muddy little
potholes along our friendship path.

                  But we've decided the package deal is worth it.

                  Dear Lord, thank You for my friendships. I know some
will last a lifetime, and some will fade after a short season. Please help
me be completely humble and gentle, patient, bearing with my friends in
love. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

                  Reflect and Respond:
                  They have issues. You have issues. Friendships have
issues.

                  How can you invest humility, gentleness and patience in
your friendships today?

                  Power Verse:
                  1 Peter 3:8, "Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be
sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble." (NIV)

                  © 2012 by Lysa TerKeurst. All rights reserved.

                  Proverbs 31 Ministries
                  616-G Matthews-Mint Hill Road
                  Matthews, NC 28105
                  www.Proverbs31.org 



                       
               
     
        


           
            Proverbs 31 Ministries
            616-G Matthews-Mint Hill Road, Matthews, NC 28105
            877-P31-HOME (877-731-4663)  Social Media