Thoughts from the weekend

School has begun, packing is underway, and it's scorching hot outside. This means my camera hasn't come out of its bag and I'm drawing from the summer archives for pictures to post. These are from our time in Cape Cod earlier this month.

Yesterday was another day to savor. Our time at church has been sweet, and my children are even remembering all their past Sunday school teachers and expressing their affections for them. We're entering our last few weeks here with our friends, our church, and all that has been normal and comfortable to us. It's a time to think back on all the ways we have been blessed, built up, and prepared for the next step. I am thrilled that my kids are getting more and more excited about the unknown. We feed off of each other's enthusiasm, and train our thinking to be positive. Andrew, in his quiet contemplative way, said, "I just try to fink about all the fings I don't like here." Then a minute later he said, "But I really like it here."

This will be another very full week, so yesterday was the perfect day to keep things low key. Our afternoon plans changed for the third time on the way home from church. By the time I had lunch on the table Jon was already gone for the rest of the day, the kids were dressed in camo and the living room transformed into war camps. The war game went on until mid-afternoon when it became more war-like and less game-like. I packed up the extra sheets, including the ones I've set aside for the kids to make tents with, because I've grown a little tired of war games. Still, the afternoon was pleasant and I felt rested and ready to begin the week. With lots of helpers, I ended up making blueberry pancakes for dinner and served ice cream for dessert. 

I've been thinking a lot about friendship, about the kind of friend I want to be, and about the kinds of friendships that are the most valuable. We had some sweet friends drop by Friday night and our time with them will surely be remembered. They are not the kind of friends we hang out with regularly, but because of our love for the Lord and partnership in ministry, we have the most important things in common. They displayed true friendship in their sincere care for us. They asked tough questions out of love-- not suspicion or nosiness-- and from a desire to care for us at the most intimate level. They were brutally honest about themselves, their past struggles, their dependence on God, and His mercy in their lives. We (Christians) often talk about God's sovereignty, but somehow we forget to remember that attribute with regards to certain parts of our lives. The best kind of friend helps to unearth those secret parts and provide godly encouragement and hope. Our friends cared for our souls. They cared for our family and our future, and they pointed us to Christ. And I know that they will pray for us for a long time to come. 

That's the love of a friend.

It's the kind of friend I want to become. 

(On the beach after the sun had set...)

~Katherine