Friendships to the Full

The thief comes to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

John 10:10

Find your tribe. Love them hard.

Danielle LaPorte

A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.

Proverbs 17:17

If we don’t find time to unplug, we miss opportunities to hear the voice of Him who said, ‘Be still and know that I am God’. -M. Russell Ballard

As I looked around the room, I couldn’t help but see all the smiles and some tears, as we sat down to celebrate the end of another MOPS season. As a MOPS leadership team, we had poured our hearts and souls into connecting women, loving on them, and supporting one another in this season.

Our fires had been started, and they were now burning bright. We were ready to take the next step as our 9-month journey was coming to an end.

It was a bittersweet celebration of all that had transpired in this past year, and there was change coming for all of us. Some of us would be moving on to new endeavors, while others would be stepping into different or continued leadership roles in the next MOPS season. All of us were choosing to be obedient where God had next called us.

There were hugs, laughter, tears, and good-byes, but in the end, we were thankful to be in that place with each other. We were choosing to stay connected in real relationships, celebrate, and embrace a new year of living life to the full.

As I left that end of year celebration, I was blown away by the power of relationships. We, as women, brought so many stories and emotions, along with strength and joy to that table. It was absolutely beautiful.

On my drive home that evening, I thought, I need more of this. I need more of these types of connections with women on a regular basis- to unplug and physically share in real life.

Just a few days later, I was happy to meet with another friend for a manicure date. As any mom of little ones knows, it’s often hard to schedule in that “me-time”, so we truly appreciated the time away to re-connect.

We chose to savor life, take care of ourselves, and regain some vitality in the midst of motherhood.  It not only put a smile on our faces when we added those bright colors to our nails, but it solidified our friendship. We made time for one another despite what was going on around us. And once again, I was reminded that I need more of this. I need more of these women in my life who will physically be there and stay connected no matter how crazy life gets.

In that same week, the icing on the cake was then reuniting with my MOPS table friends for a trivia night. I remember thinking, “Am I spending too much time with friends this week? 3 times in one week is a lot”, but then again, I thought… I need more of this.

As our table settled in for trivia, I don’t think anyone of us felt that we were “triva nerds”, but we didn’t care. We were there for connection and to have fun.

At the end of the night, I’m pretty sure we tied for last and realized how much we didn’t know about golf courses, cars, and Presidents, but seriously, we had the most fun. My stomach hurt so much, from laughing so hard. And seriously, those women had me almost in tears.

As we lingered in the parking lot to savor that kid-free time, one of my friends said it best. She commented on how it was so nice to just be a woman. We weren’t being a wife or a mom in that time, we were just being women.

We were embracing this part of ourselves that often gets pushed aside, and we were slowly, but surely, bringing her back…full. 

As I drove home in my strangely silent car after trivia, I knew, this is it. This is having more fun. And this is living life to the full. When I was making time for these God-given friendships with other women, I was choosing to take care of myself and enjoy these wonderful women around me.

I was discovering the full life that God intended with having “my people” by my side. And we all need those friends to love us, challenge us, laugh with us, correct us, cry with us, and just do life with us.

As summer inches closer, there’s intentionality stirring within me- I need to be more invested in my friendships. True, loyal, life-changing friends can be so hard to preserve with the distractions of social media, phones, and the multitude of other things that can make us “feel connected,” when really, we’re not.

The habit of making time for actual, physical connections truly makes us more human, more loving, and helps us to live the full life that God intended for us. Nothing on the internet compares to physically spending time with the friends and the people in our lives. 

As I unplug more this summer, I’m ready to invest in these real-life friendships and live life to the full.

Photo by Daiga Ellaby on Unsplash