Last night our weekly neighborhood Women’s Bible Study met in my backyard around a campfire, discussing God’s Word and it’s application to us today through mouthfuls of gooey S’Mores. Yummm. Can’t get much more applicable than that!
Since we’re rapidly approaching our annual day celebrating love (Feb. 14), I thought I’d give my Palentines a shout-out. The 8-10 of us gals have been doing life together for ten years now, through plus size and svelte, victories and suffering, hot tears and too many belly laughs to count (so hard sometimes my abs are sore the next day!), prodigal children, deteriorating marriages, deaths of spouses, the sudden illness and graduation to heaven of one of our own dear heart-sisters (but you’re still with us in spirit, sweet Cindy P.), job changes, health scares, and life disillusionments.
Somehow, through it all, we’ve been able to support and encourage each other on a soul-deep level, relying on Papa God as our rock when we fall into sinkholes, and knowing that scripture is solid TRUTH when it says, “By yourself, you’re unprotected. With a friend you can face the worst” (Ecc. 4:12 MSG).
I pray for you to have this same spirit of unity, dearest BFF (Blessed Friend Forever) with a team of faith sisters. If you can’t find a good fit in an existing group, it may mean reaching out and starting a group yourself, but believe me, it’s SO worth it. The Baguettes (the name we gave ourselves when we did a Rockettes-style high-kicking dance for a women’s conference a few years ago; BTW, we were a smash! But we won’t quit our day jobs) have meant the world to me and I cannot imagine going through the trials of life without them.
Real friends are truly kisses blown to us by angels. (That’s a quote from an unknown author but I wish it were me!)
So in honor of heart-friends everywhere, I’m printing an excerpt from a chapter called, “Hangin’ with My Besties” from my book, Too Loved to be Lost. And please, dearest BFF, tell us about your own besties in the comments below. Your community of BFFs would love to hear all about them!
“Girlfriends. We need ’em, we love ’em, we can’t jive without ’em.
Like Anne of Green Gables, girls need bosom friends. Men are okay, but their bosoms just aren’t the same. We need occasional silliness, moments of reckless feminine abandon, and a safe place to stash our secrets where they won’t leak.
Girlfriends are the way we learn how to love unconditionally, just as our Godfriend loves us. “A friend loves at all times” (Proverbs 17:17 NIV). We learn to overlook zits, burps, and hideous hair days, and honestly believe that this special person who hears the song down in our heart is the most beautiful creature on earth.
The same way Papa God views us.
Through loving our girlfriends, we learn forgiveness, compassion, mercy, and grace. Character traits straight from the heart of God. But to me, one of the most important things I gain from hangin’ with my besties is laughter. Pure, soul-freeing, stress-dissolving belly laughter. I believe that laughter is the catalyst that releases the joy of the Lord in our souls, and nothing bubbles up joy like the hilarity of girlfriend giggles.
Ralph Waldo Emerson said, ‘It is the blessing of old friends that you can afford to be stupid with them.’ Amen, bro.
Your bosom friends sincerely believe you’re a good egg even though you’re hopelessly cracked. They start nodding their heads in agreement long before your last word crosses your lips. We need them. They need us.
United we stand; divided we go to the mall.”
*One last thing – don’t forget my Palentine Giveaway going on RIGHT NOW! You can win a copy of my hot pink, leather-feel Valentine edition of my book, Too Blessed to be Stressed: 3-Minute Devotions for Women for yourself or a friend. It’s so easy to enter! Just click on “Freebies” at my website, DeboraCoty.com, and then the Palentine Giveaway for details. The THREE winners will be announced right here on my blog on Feb. 14. Hope you’re one of them!
LOVE this post, Deb, and I have to say AMEN to everything you wrote.
I am thankful to be blessed beyond measure by my 4 very, very best friends since high school! The 5 of us became close friends back then (actually, 2 of the girls knew each other in elementary school!) and one day between classes, I jokingly referred to us as the “Lonely Hearts Club” due to the fact that at the time, only one had a boyfriend (and sadly, it wasn’t me!). Well, that name stuck, and fast-forward decades later – – we are still Besties and we’re still LHC (we’ve shortened Lonely Hearts Club). We’ve been in each others’ weddings, been there for funerals of parents, celebrated births, etc.etc. – – I cannot imagine my life without these 4 girls in it. Now that we live in 3 different states, we’re thankful to keep in touch via technology, but look forward to another “Besties at the Beach” gathering – – hopefully this year! We’ve done that in the past and made priceless memories! I thank the Lord for these precious girls, and know we are as close as sisters.
I love your LHC, Patti Jo! Isn’t it amazing how living in different states makes no difference to your closeness? But I do hope you keep meeting as Besties at the Beach to make new memories that will continue to bond you together for many years to come. YAY for heart-sisters!
Lovely and true
So thankful for lifetime friends who pray for me and accept me with all my brokenness. Deb, I am grateful you are one of my lifelong friendship blessings!
Sandi, I’m ever so thankful for you, one of my longtime, dearest friends.