FRIENDS

I've been back from CA for approximately 10 days now and life has been full of friends.

Shortly after my return we hosted our friends from our small group bible study here for a non-traditional Mexican dinner complete with candle light, linen tablecloths, china and silver, Christmas music softly playing in the background (with the kids at another house munching pizza with a baby sitter.)

The rest of Christmas week was filled with other friends in and out as well as some of our family...and family at this house rates as some of our best friends. Turkey and the trimmings too made their appearance along with the traditional excitement of gifts etc, and now with the New Year approaching we're hosting New Years Eve, again non-traditionally (unless you live in the South), this time with a Low Country Boil. LCB begins with a BIG pot of steaming water laced with Crab Boil and contains corn on the cob, red potatoes, shrimp, kielbasa. It's drained and spread out over butcher paper covered tablecloths, no silverware, individual paper saucebowls filled with melted butter and cocktail sauce and loaves of french bread.

The common denominator in it all ... FRIENDS. I'm so grateful for all of you whether I've seen you this Christmas season or not. You are a treasure to me.

One of the last scenes in the Christmas movie, It's A Wonderful Life contains a note written to George which says 'a man with friends will never be poor'. and a dear missionary friend of ours, now at home with the Lord, often said: God's two greatest gifts to us this side of heaven are our friends and our memories.

I'm looking forward to time spent with friends in the coming year; cultivating them, encouraging and being encouraged by them and adding some new ones along the way.

M.