Taking Faithful Steps

      God has brought me to a season of intentional recently. I know that God takes us through various seasons throughout our entire lives, and every one of them has a purpose. I will say that I was pretty excited when God showed me this season of being intentional. I feel like I've been trying to be intentional the past few months, specifically with my health, so I was looking forward to what the Lord was going to show me.     I had to recall one very important thing, though. God's seasons and timelines are not the same as our seasons and timelines. When I think seasons, I think the obvious- winter, spring summer, and fall. Each of them has their own weather, activities, food associated with them. But, each of them has a first and last day so that you can look at a calendar and see when one is going to end and another is going to begin.     I have often been so foolish as to think that God's seasons work that way. I'll be doing a Bible study or word s...

      So, what do you do when your tribe's not vibing? What happens when you find yourself in a friendship with someone who doesn't have your best interests at heart?     I had to learn the hard way that who you "hang with" matters. It matters because it protects your peace, and your heart.      A few years ago, I had a very close friend. I thought that she was my ride or die. We were about as opposite as you could get, so to say that it was an unlikely friendship was an understatement. She was an extrovert, said whatever was on her mind, quick to stand up for herself, and, although she believed in God, she pretty much didn't go to church unless it was for a wedding or a funeral. But, she seemed like she was the real deal- someone who had your back no matter what. She brought out a little bit of the brave in me, which I think I needed. And, I did try to be at least a little bit of a good influence on her.     She became my human diary wh...

      So, why have I spent the past few weeks talking about my amazing friends? Because the past few years have really taught me that your tribe is your vibe, as my friend Amanda used to say.     When my husband and I were going through a hard time, and I was slap in the middle of making some stupid choices, all I wanted was friends. I didn't care who they were, what their lifestyle choices were, I just wanted friends. I was mostly seeking friends who didn't share my value and belief system because I was looking to justify my actions, which was only going to happen from a worldly perspective. I wasn't super choosy about who I hung around with. And, sure enough, when life came crashing down around me, not many of those people were there to pick up the pieces.      The people who get to see the behind the curtain stuff need to be people who you can trust sharing your junk with. You need to be able to be honest without fear of judgement. You also nee...

      Let me tell you about my other best friend. I met this woman when I was in my 40s. Her husband and my husband were friends first because they worked together, and then she and I connected through church. Honestly, at first I wasn't sure that I wanted to be friends with her. She and her husband had separated and some things that happened between them had gotten back to me through conversation, so I kind of felt a little bit wary.     I'm not even 100% sure what even brought us together to get to know each other. I remember suggesting to my husband that the 4 of us go out to dinner one night for a double date, and by the end of the night, she and I exchanged numbers and started talking pretty regularly. Then we started sitting together at church.     Then we actually started sharing things with each other- the nitty gritty stuff. She had been unfaithful to her husband as well, and she and I were both dealing with the fallout and rebuilding from tha...

      Let me tell you about my best friend. Well, another best friend. I met this woman when I was in my 30s. We had been in Florida for about a year, and I was chaperoning one of my son's kindergarten field trips. Her son was in my son's class, and she just started chatting with me. I'll be honest, I wasn't really looking to make friends at the time. I know that sounds terrible, but my focus at that time was just enjoying my son because I had been working so much. I chatted with her because I wanted to be polite. At some point she kind of just announced that we were going to be best friends, and in my head I thought "Yea, ok."     A few weeks later she invited me over for coffee, and fast forward 13 years later and here we are- best friends! She and I just started getting together fairly regularly- she was a stay at home mom, so she invited me over pretty much any day that I was off. We just started sharing our stories- husbands, kids, etc. She's about 10...

      Let me tell you about my best friends. Yes I have more than one. No, I don't think you can only have one.     There are 3 women in my life who have played a significant role, and I am so thankful for each one of them. I don't know how I would have survived various trials and sometimes life in general without each of them.     In chronological order, the first one I'm going to talk about has been one of my best friends since college. We were sorority sisters and we just clicked. She was one of my favorite people then, and she still is. I was shy and quiet, she was outgoing and funny. I was self conscious, she was so confident. She just has this amazing spirit and I have looked up to her for 25 years.     Now that we are adults in our 40s as opposed to young adults in our 20s, one thing I love about her is how strong her faith is. This woman has been through some STUFF, but no matter what, she points her eyes and her heart back to God. Sh...