sharon!  I love this!  Verry well said!
Jenifer gilley
"Friends are angels who lift us to our feet when our wings have trouble 
remembering how to fly."
Author unknown
AIM: jenibear1998
msn
[log in to unmask]
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Sharon Hooley" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Saturday, June 24, 2006 2:17 AM
Subject: Re: Friend


> Phil,
>
> The thing I'm learning to focus on is being a friend.  I say that all of 
> you, (mankind) are my friends.  Even if you want to be my enemy, that's 
> your choice, not mine.  I will not look down on you, even if you have the 
> worst of disabilities and/or an inability to communicate, or because of 
> how you look, think or behave.    If you confess your foibles, I will not 
> belittle you or give up on you.  I will apologize when I say or do 
> anything wrong and has hurt you.  I will also have the courage to set 
> boundaries, saying no when things are going too far.  Yes, there may be 
> times/situations in which I cannot, in good conscience, associate with you 
> if you are deliberately hurting yourself and others, but even then, I 
> would tell you that I am still your friend, with your best interest in 
> mind, and that being a friend does not always mean that I condone what you 
> are doing.  When your eyes are opened to the truth and you respond in 
> repentance, I will be there for you. If we have, or are forming, a healthy 
> relationship, even the little things I do can make a big difference for 
> you.  I will support your good interests. For instance, If you like to go 
> shopping, I will take the time to shop with you, if you want the company. 
> Or, if you can't drive, and I was able to, I would invite you, and pick 
> you up and do things with you regularly that you enjoy.  I will call you 
> at least once a week, even if only to ask how you're doing and what's 
> going on in your life. If you enjoy joking around, talking/doing goofy 
> things, and teasing and being teased and laughed with, Iwill do that with 
> you too.  When you are down and things aren't going well, I will listen 
> and try to stand in your shoes, being sorry that you are hurting, learning 
> to bear your burdens, as we are told to do in the Scriptures.  I will 
> introduce you to my own best friend, who will always be available, always 
> dependable, never tired or cranky, and can be all personalities that I 
> need Him to be.  He knows me the most, understands me the most, yet loves 
> me the most, and can do anything that needs to be done in my life.  He 
> will be that kind of friend for you too, if you accept His friendship and 
> do what He commands, as He told His disciples in the book of John.  If you 
> get to know and love Him, He, Jesus Christ, will take you and me to our 
> eternal home., where we will have everlasting joy in His presence. We'll 
> never have to say goodbye.
>
> Sharon
>
>