In order for friendships to be genuine, each person needs to be honest with the other. I’m not talking about the kind of honesty that hurts another’s feelings (“I hate your haircut – it’s hideous!”), but I’m talking about the kind of honesty that shares true feelings and hard to talk about topics at times for the betterment of the other.
I’ve shared about a Sister in Christ (SiC) who would walk the school track regularly with me during the school year. Some days we were both enthusiastic about either how the sermon spoke to us (we attend the same church too!) or the way the plot is coming along in our fiction books, or how God answered a prayer, showered another with a blessing, or we just feel happy because we have energy and it’s a great day.
Other mornings one (or the other of us) would be discouraged, frustrated, or one particular morning I actually sobbed (yes, sobbed – not my finest moment) because I had reached the end of what I could endure in a situation and simply needed to vent.
During one of those walks is when my friend offered to help me with marketing. She knew I was struggling and while she didn’t know more than I did, we both know how to read and could follow directions. Having a friend willing to walk alongside you in something that seems hard makes it appear easier.
In return, I’m helping her with the steps in publishing and writing that I’ve already learned, but she is starting to venture into.
In what ways have you come alongside a friend and offered encouragement or something tangible during moments of discouragement?
Has someone come alongside you and offered you support when you needed it most?
© Cheri Swalwell 2019