Finding friends

Don't you just love those moments when people walk into your life and everything changes? You are just completely blown away by them. They glow and shimmer and you can't help but be drawn in.

You start to talk and laugh and confide and trust and share and grow. From those early moments you know this is going to be something good. Something so good it could only come from goodness Himself.

The more you learn about them, the better they get. They're the sort of kindness you aspire to. The brand of smart you admire. The type of funny that leaves you gasping for air. The kind of genuine that you fall into and never want to leave. Whatever shortcomings they may have are dimmed in the light of their goodness and Godliness.

Each one of them reflects different shades of the character of God. There's something so unique and attractive on fire in them, that you could sit for hours and never lose the novelty of knowing them. Every moment with them is precious and no amount of time is quite enough. You realise that whatever part they play in your life, or you in theirs, this was not an accident.

They don't care that you're crazy. That you frequently forget your coat or burst into song. That you could probably lose a few pounds or gain a bit of common sense. That you're hopeless and needy and wild. That things are tough at the moment. That you can talk for England about nothing and everything. That you don't understand politics or know many big words. That you try but fail to keep life tidy. That you wear your heart on your sleeve. That you're a little broken and a lot bruised. That you have a past.

Instead, they like the fact that you're quirky. That you have a real laugh. That your eyes don't need eyelashes to be pretty. That even when you feel gross you still look 'beautiful'. That you're passionate. That you're sensitive. That things matter to you. That you've learnt from your mistakes. That you're only just learning to be yourself. That you're trying your best.

They see potential in you that comes from the Creator. And they want to help you pursue that.

It slowly dawns on you just how much they have affected you, when you find yourself sat on a train, thinking about them and crying the happiest tears you've ever felt run down your cheeks.

It begins to sink in that you never want them to not be a part of your life.

And all you can do is praise. Praise the God that made them and placed them in your life. Praise Him that He has the grace and compassion and love and wisdom to know that even though you don't deserve it, you need people like them in your life.