I have a friend. Okay, just to be clear- I have lots of friends. But one of my friends, her name is Ainsley. Our dads are best friends and first cousins so naturally we grew up side by side. In the past year and a half, she has become the closest definition to "soul sister" that I can comprehend this side of heaven. Living only 8 kilometers from each other has also made this sisterhood bloom like crazy. There are three major reasons I love Ainsley so much.
Number 1- She gets me. I mean really, really gets me. I can give her a look that ranges anywhere from 'I'm starving' to 'I need to pee' to 'I need to get out of here' to 'what the heck is going on' and she understands. Not only does she understand though, she does something about it. I need to pee? She's my bathroom buddy. I'm hungry? She'll give me food. She gets my heart break and feels joy when I do.
Number 2- She's always in my corner. You know how when wrestlers are all banged up and bleeding, they go to their corner and their coach is there? Always. Facecloth and band aids in hand? The coach tells them what they did wrong, what they need to do, what they need to watch for and then they go back out onto the floor. Ainlsey is that person to me. She is always, constantly in my corner. Even when I'm wrong. She helps fix up my wounds, gives me advice and then I go back out into my life and try to do better.
Number 3- She is godly. I'm not saying this lightly. This girl loves Jesus and shows it continually by the way she lives. She has taught me so much about love and servant-hood and the Kingdom, even without using many words. That's one of the best things about her. She lives scripture.
This past weekend we went to a retreat and stuck together like superglue. Not because we didn't want to hang out with other people, but because we can depend on each other no matter what. I've come to realize though, that the way I depend on her should be the way I depend on Jesus. He may not exactly be my bathroom buddy, but He is my God. And not only that- He's my friend. Lately I've been so worried about not fearing Him as God that I've forgotten to love Him like my best friend.
Ainsley may be one of my favorite people on planet earth, but she is still human. If she, as a simple teenage girl, can be depended on so much, how much more can we depend on Christ?! Won't He come running to give you food? Won't He provide for every need? Won't He defend you? By all means, fear Him as LORD, but love Him like a friend. He adores every single part of you and if you invite Him, He will start becoming part of each area of your life. We aren't meant to set aside prayer time for Jesus once a day and keep Him within the ten minutes we've allotted our God. He is by you every single second. He's there to laugh with, cry with, yell with. He gets you. I mean really, really gets you. You don't even need to give Him a look and He understands. He gets your heartbreak and feels your joy. And you know what's even better? He's in your corner. Oh, yeah. Is He ever. He is going to b e right there when the world leaves you banged up and broken. Like a wrestler crawls to His coach, so you can stumble right to Jesus. He'll catch you. He'll do the healing, give you advice and send you back out into the battlefield of your life. But what He does that Ainsley and no one else can do is... He'll go with you. For those who have taken Him as Savior, He lives in your heart and walks right on out into the messy, terrifying battlefield with you.
I think Christians can sometimes forget that Jesus is dependable. That sounds silly, but it's true. Yes, He is interested in the big, important parts of your life, but He is interested in all the little parts too. The not-so-important parts. The God of the universe is huge and mighty and powerful, but He also desires to have an intimate relationship with you. So I urge you, beg you, to not confine this God to a ten minute prayer session. Let Him into every section of your life and watch Him work.
I listed 3 reasons why I love Ainsley- she gets me, she's always in my corner and she's godly. Christ is all of that and so much more (especially the third one). If we can depend on our friends and family so much, I think it's time we start depending on Jesus that way, too. Don't you?
Number 1- She gets me. I mean really, really gets me. I can give her a look that ranges anywhere from 'I'm starving' to 'I need to pee' to 'I need to get out of here' to 'what the heck is going on' and she understands. Not only does she understand though, she does something about it. I need to pee? She's my bathroom buddy. I'm hungry? She'll give me food. She gets my heart break and feels joy when I do.
Number 2- She's always in my corner. You know how when wrestlers are all banged up and bleeding, they go to their corner and their coach is there? Always. Facecloth and band aids in hand? The coach tells them what they did wrong, what they need to do, what they need to watch for and then they go back out onto the floor. Ainlsey is that person to me. She is always, constantly in my corner. Even when I'm wrong. She helps fix up my wounds, gives me advice and then I go back out into my life and try to do better.
Number 3- She is godly. I'm not saying this lightly. This girl loves Jesus and shows it continually by the way she lives. She has taught me so much about love and servant-hood and the Kingdom, even without using many words. That's one of the best things about her. She lives scripture.
This past weekend we went to a retreat and stuck together like superglue. Not because we didn't want to hang out with other people, but because we can depend on each other no matter what. I've come to realize though, that the way I depend on her should be the way I depend on Jesus. He may not exactly be my bathroom buddy, but He is my God. And not only that- He's my friend. Lately I've been so worried about not fearing Him as God that I've forgotten to love Him like my best friend.
Ainsley may be one of my favorite people on planet earth, but she is still human. If she, as a simple teenage girl, can be depended on so much, how much more can we depend on Christ?! Won't He come running to give you food? Won't He provide for every need? Won't He defend you? By all means, fear Him as LORD, but love Him like a friend. He adores every single part of you and if you invite Him, He will start becoming part of each area of your life. We aren't meant to set aside prayer time for Jesus once a day and keep Him within the ten minutes we've allotted our God. He is by you every single second. He's there to laugh with, cry with, yell with. He gets you. I mean really, really gets you. You don't even need to give Him a look and He understands. He gets your heartbreak and feels your joy. And you know what's even better? He's in your corner. Oh, yeah. Is He ever. He is going to b e right there when the world leaves you banged up and broken. Like a wrestler crawls to His coach, so you can stumble right to Jesus. He'll catch you. He'll do the healing, give you advice and send you back out into the battlefield of your life. But what He does that Ainsley and no one else can do is... He'll go with you. For those who have taken Him as Savior, He lives in your heart and walks right on out into the messy, terrifying battlefield with you.
I think Christians can sometimes forget that Jesus is dependable. That sounds silly, but it's true. Yes, He is interested in the big, important parts of your life, but He is interested in all the little parts too. The not-so-important parts. The God of the universe is huge and mighty and powerful, but He also desires to have an intimate relationship with you. So I urge you, beg you, to not confine this God to a ten minute prayer session. Let Him into every section of your life and watch Him work.
I listed 3 reasons why I love Ainsley- she gets me, she's always in my corner and she's godly. Christ is all of that and so much more (especially the third one). If we can depend on our friends and family so much, I think it's time we start depending on Jesus that way, too. Don't you?