Photo by HollyMathis
Friends make the world go ’round. They love us most when we deserve the least.
They encourage, correct and inspire us to dream bigger–to be greater.
They are selfless and certifiably crazy; but we love ‘em.
We need ‘em to remind us how to love for real.
Ever notice how an animal behaves when it’s backed into a corner? Its body hair stands on end. It hisses, snarls or growls to let you know it’ll attack if you come any closer. So, naturally we do what any self-respecting person would: we high tail it in the opposite direction! Common sense dictates that we should.
Now, imagine for a moment that this creature were a friend or loved one. Would you leave your hissing, growling or snarling friend to suffer on their own? If he or she were drowning in a cesspool of self-degradation, anguish and hatred, would you high-tail it then? How about when they lunge–or claw–at you because you want to help, what do you do? Common sense dictates that we should run.
But wisdom dictates something else. Wisdom says we should stay. Not as a punching bag or a doormat but as a friend who understands that letting go is sometimes more frightening to others than they will admit. Sometimes, forsaking the familiar in favor of the unknown causes others to panic or lash out in anger.
Does it hurt? Sometimes. Does it hurt them more? You bet it does.
See: fear, pain, torment and the like are acerbic in nature. They eat through every healthy emotion and thought until all that remains is carnage and desolation.
Our friends or loved ones may not know it but they need our patience, our forgiveness but more important, they need our love. They need us to stand in wisdom’s wake refusing to abandon or judge them at the height of their struggles or torment.
If we are indeed ambassadors of the Most High God, then let us commit to love others as He loves us.
Thanks for visiting,
Selena
