Friends

I was one of 3 hostesses for a bridesmaid's luncheon today. The bride is my daughter Emily's best friend since their days in kindergarten. I went down a rabbit hole on a sewing project that interfered with my blog writing, but the personalized tablecloths were a big hit.  It was a joy to bring together friends and family members of the couple for the first celebration of the weekend. The friend group is in the busy years of marrying and starting families, and I love catching up on their lives and meeting their young children.

The activities surrounding this wedding remind me of the unrivaled blessing of long-term friendships. New friends are a delight, but sharing a history with someone gives a friendship an added dimension. We laughed today about the first-grade field trip to see the dinosaur exhibit at the U. of Arkansas museum and how scary the animated T. Rex was to those little 6-year-olds. There were many years of playing basketball and volleyball together. And I reminisced with the bride's grandmother about celebrating their high-school graduation together. No doubt, there will be more to come.

Gracious and merciful God, thank you for the gift of friendship. You created Adam and Eve and placed them in the garden to be companions to one another and to You. Were you lonely? We hear repeatedly in Scripture and in our Eucharistic prayers that what You most want from us is relationship. Jesus selected a group of friends to travel ancient Palestine with Him and to continue His earthly ministry after He returned to You. He modeled for us that ministry is relational. We cannot be Christians by ourselves, in isolation. We learn what it means to serve by seeing ourselves reflected in the eyes of our community. Draw us into the Spirit's orbit by surrounding us with friends who wish to share the journey. Then plant your Holy Spirit in our hearts and in our midst as we seek to know and serve You.

 Amen