Posted: December 17, 2024
There are moments and words that impact us profoundly and change our way of thinking and life. One of those times was when best selling author Gordon MacDonald spoke at our church on his book A Resilient Life. What stuck with me was on his chapter of friendships and challenging us to have an “inner circle” of friends who will help us finish well. After his presentation I spent some time with him and we continued that deeply satisfying conversation. The process starts with honest conversations. Within the next week I put Gordon’s words into action. I contacted three friends and arranged to meet them for breakfast once a month. We continued these lovely times of intimately sharing our lives, our joys and disappointments. Around that same time I also asked two other women to join me for a Bible Study and we continued these beautiful connecting times for over…
Posted in: accumulate experiences, adventure, all alone, ask for help, ask God, ask questions, authentic, be a blessing, Best friends, blessings, Christmas joy, circle of friends, companionship, Covid-19, Forgiveness, friends, Friendship, girlfriends, growing old, happiness needs to be shared, honesty, introvert, loneliness, make time for each other, Prayer deepens relationships, relationships, resilience, resilient, spiritual friendships, we are made for relationships, we need each other
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Posted: November 11, 2024
One of the simplest and most powerful ways to cultivate and deepen friendships is to pray together. It’s free. All it costs you is your time and commitment. When people ask me, “Heidi, when and how did you learn and love to pray?” My response is always: “Out of desperation.” Most of us learn to pray out of desperation. Grieving the deaths of two husbands I prayed fearlessly and passionately because I had nothing to lose and everything to gain. That’s why I can pray on the spot, in a group, in front of hundreds of people because I’m not praying to impress , I’m praying to my Abba Father who hears my prayers. We don’t pray to impress or sound smart or holy. For over 10 years, without missing a single month, I’ve been praying with two friends by Skype and now Zoom. One lives in Alabama and one…
Posted in: ask for help, ask God, Christ in us, Come to Jesus, disappointments, don't give up, Friendship, girlfriends, God's love, goodness of God, Intimacy, loneliness, make time for each other, one-another, Prayer, Prayer deepens relationships, Praying divides our burdens, praying with friends, presence of God, relationships, spiritual friendships, we need each other
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Posted: February 12, 2023
We crave connections and knowing we belong. The kinds of relationships that make us feel seen, heard and safe. Life refuses to be predictable and we all need spiritual friendships to help us navigate the crazy uncertainties of life these days. Trustworthy and spiritual friendships lovingly share their wisdom and guide us into places we’ve never been before. But it takes more than just one friend. We all want that BFF that “gets us” and we hope they will complete us in all ways. My pastor, Scott Lanigan, last weekend made it very clear that no one on this planet can complete us fully. That’s God’s job and He loves to do it! So our spiritual friendships are here to be the hands and feet of Jesus to help us be better, stronger, wiser and more loving. But we can’t expect one friend to fulfill all those roles. You probably…
Posted in: Ecclesiastes, a time for everything under the Heaven, adventure, ask for help, beauty and joy, Best friends, Bible Study, companionship, Encouragement, Friendship, girlfriends, God's love, happy heart, joy, Laughter, relationships, spiritual friendships, triple braided cord, we need each other
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