FRIENDSHIP...For better or for worse? Til death do us part?

I have been thinking, talking with Tyler and seriously praying about the topic of friendship since this past Sunday night. I have no idea why I initially started thinking about friendship on that particular night, but maybe it was because Tyler was preparing to leave for Raleigh, NC for a few days. Even though I lived here in Summerville alone for 5 months now that I'm married the concern and desire, really, for friendships here have been swirling in my mind. Of course I have wonderful "work" friends, but none that I have gotten very close to as of now. So I began praying for new friends, and for my current friends (for continued strength and closeness in the friends I have that live nearby) and praying for the strength of Tyler and my friendship. I began reading through my devotion book on Sunday night and found a wonderful reading about what God says about friendships...

The Joys of Friendship

"I thank my God everytime I remember you." Phillipines 1:3

What is a friend? The dictionary defines the word friend as "a person who is attached to another by feelings of affection or personal regard." This definintion is accurate, as far as it goes, but wehen we examine the deeper meaning of friendship, so many more descriptors come to mind; trustworthiness, loyalty, helpfulness, kindness, encouragement, humor, and cheerfulness, to mention but a few.

Today, as you consider the many blessings that God has given you, remember to thank Him for the friends He has chosen to place along your path. May you be a blessing to them, and may they richly bless you today, tomorrow and every day that you live.

This devotion really made me ask myself a LOT of questions. Do those I call my friends and DO I possess these traits that a true and good friend should if they really love me? Do I treat my friends with loyalty, kindness, etc.? Am I EVER a blessing to any of my friends?

I can't be positive of all of these things, but they are all traits I will certainly think more about in regards to the people I cherish and value! I will continue to pray that I can somehow bless those people that consider me as their friend. Isn't that the point of having friends? To bless one another the way God intended people to do? I certainly think so, and  know that's what I want out of my friendships! I have that with my husband which is why I married him, and I have that with my family which is why I still talk to them...haha;) It's really an interesting subject that has continued consuming a large portion of my mind this whole week...

Typical Cody-eyes closed in all pictures (ha)

Yep, that's what they did...among other questionable things :)

 In a strange irony, in regards to thinking about my friends, one of our close friends, Cody Gleaton lost his mother the next day, Monday. Mrs. Jane Gleaton was also a wonderful friend of both Tyler and me. I met Cody on the Carnival cruise before I even met Tyler, and his family has been there throughout our relationship since the beginning. From my first trip to South Carolina, staying at both Karen and Chesley's and Mrs. Janes's house, Mrs. Jane has always been there for me with such loving and accepting arms! Arms that were always full of the BEST lemonade, chicken salad, ham delights and french toast breakfasts with sausage AND bacon to name a few of our favorites. Her doors were always open with love and GREAT conversation. She had been struggling with lou gehrig's disease recently, but don't worry, it never slowed her thoughtful and giving heart. Even though she had lost her ability to speak as of our wedding date, she still wrote on her marker board to Cody that he needed to go and attend our wedding. When her daughter-in-law, Karen, told me that today at the funeral tears immediately filled my eyes. How could she have been thinking of Tyler and me during a time when her family needed to be spending every second possible with her in the hospital? Of course Cody couldn't leave his mother's side for our wedding, and we never would have wanted him to! Just the thought, however, that she remembered and thought of us goes to prove her truly loving and selfless nature. Now THAT, ladies and gentlemen is a TRUE FRIEND! This is why there is a very specific reason I have the question mark after the phrase "til death do us part"...Even through Mrs. Jane's death, we didn't part. An extremely strong piece of her still, and always will, live with me. Her selflessness, concern and love for others she called friends  I will carry with me in my heart. Thank you, Mrs, Jane for inspiring me and so many others to be loving and giving to one another! What a valuable gift your life has given us all that death can NOT ever take away!

Wow, is God speaking or what!? Today I'm flipping through a magazine on the way home from Mrs. Jane's funeral and a page with "today's thoguht" read...

"SOMETIMES THE LONELIEST MOMENTS ARE THE ONES THAT SHOW YOU HOW STRONG YOU REALLY ARE"-The lonely moments I've had alone at home these past few days got me thinking about friendship.

Thank you Lord for all of these thoughts and blessings you have shown and taught me about friendship through this mini-journey. Thank you for Mrs. Jane, her life and her inspiration on all of her family and friends that loved her. Thank you for Cody and what he means to Tyler and me. We miss seeing him and love him very much. Please send your angels over Mr. Fritz, Cody, Chesley, Karen, the boys and all of Mrs. Jane's family members that miss her and love her so much. Please continue to give me friends that are blessings and be with my friends that are blessing in my life now. Thank you for bringing them into my life.