This has been on my mind a lot lately. I believe that one of God’s greatest gifts is the gift of friendship. When I think back on my life, I always feel so much gratitude for the friendships that have helped me through every phase of my life. They have blessed me with their time, their encouragement, their love, their laughter, & their understanding. They haven’t judged me for my weaknesses but rather loved me for & in spite of them. A real friend leaves you feeling uplifted & inspired. You feel that life, with all it’s trials, is made more bearable because of the love & encouragement of true friends.

ISOLATION IS A TOOL OF THE DEVIL…

This is why I think that one of Satan’s greatest tools is to have us isolate ourselves from God & others. We may sometimes feel that no one understands us, or our situation, and we withdraw. When we do this, we allow Satan to influence our thoughts. I love this quote by Gordon B. Hinckley…

It is important to know when you feel down that many others do also and that their circumstances are generally much worse than yours. And it’s important to know that when one of us is down it becomes the obligation of his friends to give him a lift. I hope that each of us will cultivate a sensitivity toward the feelings of others and, when encouragement is needed, make an effort to extend it. Be a friend and you will have a friend. God be thanked for wonderful friends.

This is so true! When we reach out to others, we realize that they have their own personal struggles as well. Walls come down when we realize that those around us aren’t perfect. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been surprised when I’ve really gotten to know someone because of how different they were from my first impressions. We can’t get to know others by observing them! We get to know others by spending one-on-one time with them.

THE BEST KIND OF SERVICE

We often talk about the need to serve others & we get caught up in trying to think of “service projects”. But I think the greatest form of service is simply to be a good friend & to be available when someone needs to talk.

At no time will we be more Christlike than when we are a friend.  – Marlin K. Jensen

MAKING TIME FOR OTHERS…

In our fast paced world, this isn’t always easy to do. I know I don’t always feel like I have time for others. Most of the time I’m just trying to get through my day. This results in unintended isolation & that always takes a toll on my spirit. This is why we should pray for opportunities, as well as the desire, to connect with others. God knows who needs a friend & he will inspire us to be sensitive to the needs of others…but only if we ask him & if we listen to the promptings when they come. I notice a huge difference in my availability AND in my ability to connect with others when I am first taking time to connect with God.

If someone’s name randomly pops into your head, make an effort to connect with them. It could be through a phone call, a letter, an email, or some other way. You never know if that is God’s way of telling you that someone needs your encouragement that day. He often uses us to answer someone else’s prayers.

WE ARE ALL IN THIS TOGETHER…

I’ll leave you with one of my favorite quotes on this topic that speaks straight to my heart…

We are all in this together. We need each other. Oh, how we need each other. Those of us who are old need you who are young. And, hopefully, you who are young need some of us who are old. It is a sociological fact that women need women. We need deep and satisfying and loyal friendships with each other. These friendships are a necessary source of sustenance. We need to renew our faith every day. – Marjorie Pay Hinckley