(poem written 5/6/05 Freda Reynolds)
Come along side
be my guide
Help me walk
Let me talk
So I can grow
And others show
All we learn
Then in turn
Walk with another
Come along side
and be their guide.
All for His glory
We will tell His story
Do the people in the garden of your life help you thrive or cause drought to your soul? Remember we are learning to be a well-watered garden. Therefore, we sometimes need to stop and evaluate the people in our lives. As I look around in my life, I see those who have helped me be a better person. I am most fortunate in having friends who have stuck by through the most difficult times in my life. They have mentored and spoke the truth in love when I sometimes acted most unlovely.
I remember being told that if you have 2-3 true friends throughout your life you are most blessed. There is one such friend who has stood by me for almost all of my entire married life.
She and I married high school friends about the same time. Soon after they married and moved to our hometown, I went to visit. When she opened the door I blurted out, so she reminds me often, “Hi my name is ___ and I am going to be your forever friend.” She wasn’t real sure about that, but the four of us have laughed and cried together; we have been through sickness and death of loved ones. We have watched our children grow up and be successful people. She has been one of the most encouraging flowers from my garden. She loves the Lord and has mentored many young women through the years. In our lives, friendship and mentoring go hand in hand.
There are so many others who walked alongside me and have been my guide. Those who have studied God’s Word with me. Those who have been in ministry with me. Those who have loved me in spite of myself.
We all need to be that to someone. God wants us to thrive in his garden. He wants us to be dependent on Him. Jesus wants us to create in others a hunger for Him. That’s the kind of friend I want to be.
Proverbs 17:17 “A friend loves at all times.”
I Samuel 18:1 “Now it came about when he had finished speaking to Saul, that the soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as himself.”
3 John 2 “Dear friend, I hope all is well with you and that you are as healthy in body as you are strong in spirit.”
Proverbs 27:17 “As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend.”
One more reminder: It is Jesus who is the glue binding friends together.
BE A MENTOR! WATER SOMEONE’S GARDEN!
Freda
I am a flower that has been watered by being a part of the many Bible studies held in your home through the years and I am honored to call you friend. We have not always agreed on the “tone” of Scripture but we have always agreed that it is life giving! Thank you my friend for watering so many in our community and beyond. This is a great reminder of Pass It On!