Twenties Answer: Question #1

Welcome to Twenties Answer! 
This is a new series that was inspired by Paul Angone and his 11 Questions That Every Twenty Something Needs to Answer! For the next 11 weeks, every Tuesday, I'm going to be answering these questions. Send me an email or comment below your answers if you're a twenty something. Or, if you are past your twenties, how would you answer the question or what you would have done differently back in your 20s. Us twenty somethings, we love advice! Will you join me? 
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Remember your childhood best friend? The kid across the street you rode bikes with every day after school? The neighborhood friend you played soccer with in her front yard? The first friend you were "BFF" with? The friend your parents didn't like? The friend that everyone else thought was weird? The friend you could say anything to? The one who was attached to your hip and vice versa? The friend you lost? The friend you skipped school with? What about that friend that you thought would never leave and then they did? 

I've never been one to have TONS of friends. There were lots of people that I talked to in school, but the number of those people that I considered my "besties" could always be counted on one hand. Even through college and now, that has remained true. I am lucky to say that I have a friend from kindergarten who is still my friend to this day. That almost never happens and the fact that we have been going strong since 1994, blows me away. She was the only friend that I remained in contact with after leaving Tennessee that wasn't a family member. I remember the other friends that I thought I would have forever, but we are now merely Facebook friends. Which pretty means we are acquaintances. How many of our Facebook "friends" are actually people we talk to on a daily basis. How many of those "friends" do we seek out when life gets hard?

Flash forward to high school. Pretty much the same story as elementary and middle school. I talked to many people, but my close friend circle was pretty much me and three other girls. We literally did everything together through all 4 years. Once high school graduation came? We split ways and now I only keep up with them via Facebook. 

Fall of 2007. The first time I would step on a college campus where I knew only 2 people. And I didn't know them that well. Those 2 people were my only link to a whole new world and community of people. I got involved with the BCM and a church that became my home for the next 5 years. This brave new world is where life really began. I was surrounded, encouraged, molded, and discipled, in the best way imaginable, by people older than me. I looked up to them and they helped guide me through my first couple years of college. Then, before I knew it, I was in their shoes. It was my time to do the same for those that came after me. During these years, I had some friendships that didn't last and some that survived everything that was thrown at them. 

I cannot begin to think about all the things that my friends have taught me, even the ones who didn't stick around. They may be the ones I learned from the most. But, I can honestly say that my friends do bring me life. They push me toward my goals and help me pursue my dreams. They ask me the hard questions that I hate answering. They point me towards Christ. They don't walk away when it gets hard. They bring laughter, advice, prayer, hugs, adventures, encouragement. I want to follow in their footsteps. 


Friendships are one of the greatest things we have been blessed with. They are definitely not something to take lightly or for granted. Friendships are A LOT  of work. They cannot be one-sided. They have to be intentional. Who wants to be friends with someone who only talks of their problems, who offers no encouragement, who flakes every time plans are made? We are to celebrate with one another, we are to cry with one another. 


We are to be real. 


We are to give life.

We aren't always blessed with fantastic friendships. Sometimes, they just plain suck. What can we do when we are surrounded by friends who  don't give us life? How about your friends? Do they give you life or are they taking it away?


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