A few months ago TODAY'S CHRISTIAN WOMAN asked Cheri Mueller and me to write an article about faith-filled friendship. After days of parlay and debate (even arguing) over the topic we came up with our take. Our piece was ultimately titled SOUL SISTERS: 4 Ways To Foster Spiritual Friendships. Even after it was printed, though, we still felt as if defining soulful friendship was like trying to pin the wings of a butterfly.
It makes me wonder:
- What's your take on faith-filled friendship?
- What sets soul sisters apart from other kinds of friends?
- What defines spiritual friendship?
- What makes it a quintessential part of our lives?
- How do you define soulful friendship?
I'd love to hear from you. So, please join a Girl Talk . . . God Talk Conversation by sharing your ideas here. Jot down your thoughts by posting a comment on this entry during January. Share a sentence, share a story, share a paragraph, or two, or twenty. My assistant and I will choose several of our favorite comments and include them in a blog entry on February 1, 2008. I'll also post the complete article, SOUL SISTERS: 4 Ways To Foster Spiritual Friendships (along with a hilarious FRIENDSHIP QUIZ that accompanied it in TCW) for a Valentine's Day Post.
If your entry is selected for the February 1st post, you'll win a free copy of GIRL TALK . . . GOD TALK: What Your Friends Can Teach You About Prayer! (If you already have Girl Talk, we'll send you The Bible Is A Girls Best Friend: Experiencing a Fresh Encounter with God's Word, or Walk with Me: Two Friends On A Spiritual Journey Together.) Any of the books, by the way, would make a great Valentine's Day gift for a friend!
Thanks for joining the conversation,
Sally
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6 comments:
Can I be your assistant?
Faith-filled friends help you when you need it... even if it costs them something. They see themselves as richer for having given away their time or resources. This amazes me, because I am a person that has needed a lot of practical help. And faith-filled friends help because they love me, but I know they also do it as a way to love God.
And the love I received tonight was deliciously covered with parmesan cheese and perfectly browned. Thank you, Sally.
To me faith-filled friends are “Jesus with skin on.” These dear friends help me keep running the race in the midst of life’s circumstances. They help me keep focused on a holy perspective. They help me laugh at the insurmountable odds! Bottom line…they are the hands and feet of Jesus!
love to you, julie mac
Faith-filled friends are forever friends. I remember telling a dear Christian friend who was living far away, "Maybe God will let us have rooms next to each other in heaven!" Our friendship deepened when we realized the seeds we sow as friends now can continue to grow without end - even though we may never live close to each other here on earth.
Girlfriends, who are in essence "sisters" in God's family, can connect in deeper ways because of their faith. As we invite the Holy Spirit into our friendships, the blessings of friendship are multiplied. The Holy Spirit can even nudge us to pray for each other when the other one needs it. What an amazing connection!
Thank you, God, for providing us with soul sisters!
Beth
The sweet connection I share with faith-filled friends transcends any distance or lapse of time between us. There is no masquerade, I am who I am, warts and all. Miraculously, all they see in me glistens and shines. I don't get that, but they are precious to me because of it. Just knowing that they are out there somewhere being their beautiful selves before God encourages me. When I think of or connect with my faith-filled friends, I am lifted up, and I thank God that He has given them to me, treasures I cherish.
love to you, db
Hi Sally! I saw your comment at John's blog--I didn't know you had one! (We've met--my husband is a really good friend of John's)
I'll take a stab at your question(s):
The great difference between regular friendships and those with whom we have a spiritual kinship is that there is a third person in the relationship: God. His presence in the relationship brings it into the realm of the supernatural, and allows us to have supernatural forgiveness when we wrong one another, supernatural agreement on the most important things, and the spirit of truth in what we say to each other.
Having spiritual oneness allows us a freedom that just isn't there in an ordinary friendship--a freedom to be wholly and transparently ourselves. And there is a wisdom that a spiritual friend has, a wisdom that comes from above, that gives her objectivity when I'm having trouble seeing straight. I can trust that my spiritual friend will speak truth in love to me when I need it, not just agree with everything I say--and that, to me, is one of the greatest gifts of a spiritual friendship.
Another wonderful thing about spiritual friendships is that they can go from acquaintance to friendship very quickly. When we both know and are seeking to obey the same Person, we have a lot of important common ground already! And when you haven't seen a soul sister in awhile, it's easy to pick up where you left off, simply by asking: What has God been doing in your life? Again, that idea that there are three persons in the relationship: A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.
I'll be eager to read the article!
Jeanne
Dear Jeanne,
Thanks for writing! I loved your comments . . . and agree. Don't you also think that spiritual friendship can be very ordinary, daily, as organic as earth?!
And, I must admit, that though my husband has the kids & I'm supposed to be doing some writing before we sprint off to church this morning . . . I spent most of my sacred time reading your inspiring, prolific, truthful blog. (I checked out your son's blog, too!) Thanks for your writing, your ideas, your life-well-lived!
I've admired you from afar . . . and now I feel that I know you a bit better - ironically - through cyber-space.
God's richest blessings on your and yours,
Sally
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