Habla Espanol?

I have had the benefit of working abroad among people who do not understand English for about a year now. They speak Spanish; which I do not speak very well...though I am slowly picking up enough words for the work that we do. We get through the days fairly well with a combination of words and signals.
However, we do not communicate hardly at all about anything other than work.  There is no small talk and no chit chat. There are no friendly conversations spent trying to get to know one another. The work we do is tiring and we normally do not have the energy it requires to communicate when you can't readily understand each other's words.
And this leads me to what I wanted to write about. There was some slight drama recently with another American coworker who did speak English. He and I spoke a lot getting to know each other and very quickly realized we had completely different views and opinions on just about everything. It led to some interesting personal conflict.  After the hullabaloo settled I wondered how it was that the first person in over a year that I had any issues with was a fellow American?  Then I thought something rather startling: our discussions had led us to develop such a strong opinion of each other that it led to strife.  We didn't work with each other long enough to experience each other.  Everything we knew or thought about each other was from our words.  Then I thought, I wonder what our relationship would have turned out to be like if we had never spoken but had only observed each other?
I have very good relationships with the multi-national men I work with and I realize now that the whole of their opinion and knowledge of me comes from strictly their observations of me. I have never had the ability to tell them about myself, to describe myself to them, or speak to them about what makes me me. They can only watch me and draw their conclusions from that.
It is no wonder then that our Lord advises us to tame our tongues, watch what we say, and to be accountable for what we do say. Do a search of the Word and see for yourself.  Over and over again we are warned of the danger, foolishness, and utter stupidity of letting words rule our lives. I am so thankful to have had this chance to see the positive power of holding my tongue (albeit circumstantially and not voluntarily) and simply letting my life actions speak for themselves.

More on friends

Here is a letter I recently wrote.  

I will be praying for you my friend. Praying lots. I look forward to spending some time, any time, with you soon!
Someone asked me how I manage my friendships on top of everything else in life...work, family, etc.  I like to say that:
1) I don't have many true friendships outside of my marriage and family. I have given this lots of thought and I don't think it is necessarily Gods will (for me at least, and I would guess many others) to have many true friendships. Acquaintances...yes. Fellowship with fellow believers...yes. Neighbors...yes. Fellow citizens and community partners...yes. But deep, strong friendships characterized by love, sacrifice, and faith...not necessarily. I look to one of the keenest friendships in Gods Word, David & Jonathan, for inspiration. Those two guys didn't have a bevy of men around them with whom they shared similar friendships...at least that is recorded. But what they had between themselves was remarkable and special.  And it was strongly characterized by many lengthy absences...which leads to my next point...
2) what true friendships you have are, I believe, defined by their ability to reunite after absences and pick up where they left off at as if no time had passed at all.  These are the type of friendships that can and will weather the turbulence and ever changing landscapes of our individual lives. They allow for the necessary timeouts imposed on them by the other demands of our lives.  And they patiently wait for whatever moments are given them in whatever season God deems fit....knowing that at the end of it all, our times spent together here on earth, limited as they may have been, will have paled during the bright eternity awaiting us.

All this to say, I can count on one hand the types of friendships i enjoy that meet these harsh descriptions...and yours is at the top of the list my friend!

🇺🇸 

Friends

I have a friend. Our lives often move in opposite directions and our friendship will hibernate for months, sometimes. But then we find ourselves face to face and it is as if no time has passed at all. The little burst of joy I get at these mini-reunions is like ice-cold tea on a blazing summer afternoon...unexpected, delightful, and refreshing!

I have another friend. Our relationship is much the same as my first friend but with one minor difference...the hibernation periods go for years sometimes.

I have another friend. She's my wife and we share this life.  I am extremely thankful for that. There is so much more to share about her but I prefer to keep that a mystery.

I have a bunch of little friends...my children. I balance friendship with fathering, mentoring, teaching, training, pastoring, guiding, and various other roles.

I also have another Friend. He has saved me and loves me unconditionally in a manner that challenges me and often confuses me. I sometimes don't feel that I know Him very well...or at least as well as I ought. But one day I know our relationship will transform into something that will encompass and surpass my other friendships. I hope that day comes soon. I am very interested to see how it all will work out.

Week 7

Jesus answered him and said, "Most assuredly I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God."
John 3:3

Week 5

For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
Matthew 6:21