bon voyage...

I helped my best friend pack a few days ago.  She is moving to the other side of the continent and I should be happy for her. She and her husband are off on a journey, allowing God to call upon and use their lives.  
I went through the thousand stages of grief, or however many there are.  I ignored the inevitable at first, assuming the thought of moving would go away; get caught up in their whirlwind lives.  It continued to come up, rearing its ugly head when I least expected it.  I then convinced myself it would be no big deal if they did leave.  Mature people can have long-distance friendships, right?  I tried to talk my husband into moving too, figuring that to be the best solution.  He thought otherwise.  
The thoughts began racing through my head:  whom would I share my secrets with?  Who would talk me down from my ledges?  Who would continue to teach me how to be a disciple of Christ?  A wife?  A mother???
See, as always God had a plan right from the beginning.  When I became the Lord’s, I was clueless.  My friends like to make light of this, but truth be known; after I was accepted at my Christian college for a degree in Christian Ministry, I celebrated by having a few drinks at the local bar.  I didn’t know squat.  In fact, the things I did know could be summed up on a few fingers:  I opened the doors to Jesus.  I was a forgiven sinner.  I was unconditionally loved and accepted by God.  I was to tell others about this.  Ok.  My decision to attend college was not my own to make.  I just knew I was to go.  There is no other explanation.  
Through the blind faith action of attending class, I met the husband of my best friend.  He was a pastor of a mission in the city pursuing more education.  One of our first assignments was to interview a pastor, and since I did not know another one, I asked him.  He invited me to the mission to meet his wife and do the interview.  
Forgive me if I sound like a story line here, but when she and I met for the first time, something strange happened.  We just instantly connected.
Long story short, I became her student for the next two years after.  If you know your Bible, I was her Timothy and she was my Paul.  She taught me how to forgive, how to laugh, and how to love.  I saw Jesus in a completely different light through her eyes.  He became someone I could fall in love with.  Just like she had.  
God had put someone in my life to help me succeed.  Someone I wasn’t afraid to be honest with, someone who could tell me the truth.  For a season in my life when I needed her the most, she was there.
And so now she’s gone.  I know she is still in my life, don’t get me wrong.  Nevertheless, I cannot go running to her house every time I bruise my spirit.  I cannot get a hug when I feel alone.  

BOY THIS IS SAD.  IS THERE A POINT?

Believe it or not, there is a happy point here.  Let us peruse a passage from Eugene Peterson, author of The Message, with his thoughts on friendship:
“And then someone enters our life who isn’t looking for someone to use, is leisurely enough to find out what’s really going on in us, is secure enough not to exploit our weaknesses or attack our strengths, recognizes our inner life and understands the difficulty of living out our inner convictions, confirms what’s deepest within us.  A friend.” From ‘Leap over a Wall.’

And then I read the words Jesus said to His disciples before He left them:
“This is my command:  Love one another he way I loved you.  This is the very best way to love. Put your life on the line for your friends.  You are my friends when you do the things I command you.” John 15.12-14

And it occurred to me that Jesus was and is a friend to me.  And although He is not here physically, our friendship does not change.  God calls all of us to grow, to do His will.  Jesus was called to put His body on a cross and die for His friends.  My best friend was called for a time to be a teacher, a sage if you will, to me.  Then she was called to go.  Perhaps she will be able to help another struggling newborn on their road to Jesus.  
We are all called to be brothers and sisters in Christ, helping and loving one another as best we can.  I am a better woman for knowing my best friend.  
I’ll end with the words Paul spoke to Timothy.  I can bet that Timothy was saying them right back to Paul.

“Every time I say your name in prayer – which is practically all the time – I thank God for you, the God I worship with my whole life in the tradition of my ancestors.  I miss you a lot, especially when I remember that last tearful good-bye, and I look forward to a joy-packed reunion.” 2 Timothy 1.3-4