Will You Be My Friend?

(07/31/11)

There are many things we do for our children to get them (and us) through the summer months, the most often used of which would be a trip to the park.  For a young child, nothing beats an afternoon of slides, swings, and monkey bars.  My daughter’s favorite, the swings, is where she always heads first, wanting mommy to either push her or swing next to her.  Quite often the park is full of other children running from one play area to the next with complete abandon while their parents try to keep up.  Occasionally children from different families will meet and begin to play together.  Sometimes they get along and sometimes not, but what I find awesome is that they are almost always willing to try.  And the first time I heard my daughter ask the question, “Will you be my friend?”, I was nearly overwhelmed.  Being that I am no longer a child, and have a much harder time opening myself up for rejection, I sat waiting with baited breath for the other child’s response.  She said yes!  Thank you, God, that my daughter’s feelings weren’t hurt!  Then, as usual, I realized what a lesson this was to me.  My fear of rejection is something that has kept me from picking up the phone and having someone to go to lunch with, go to the movies with, go for a walk with, ride my bike with… basically, it’s just left me alone.  No, not just alone, but lonely… a place that God never truly intended for me to be.  Being that I was raised to be very independent, I tend to forget that God’s plan is for us to be interdependent…always looking to God first, while still relying on each other, being there for each other, and depending on each other.  If I don’t make the effort, I won’t reap the reward… having more friends not only to rely on but to be there for… to spend time with, laugh with, cry with, and pray for.  So with God’s wisdom and a little faith, I take another lesson from Zoe and ask, “Will you be my friend?”

“A friend loves at all times…” (Proverbs 17:17, NIV)