The Joy of Companionship

"Joel! Joel!"

"Get 'her!"

"Over here!"

I stand at the edge of the flat and watch the kids dashing around, playing touch footy with a tennis ball. They are all so happy. Six kids who's ages range form 10-16, from four different families play together without a trace of competitive spirit or differences. Bang! Joel barges into 10 year old Ella who looks about 7. Over she goes with a cry. The other children run and gather around. Someone helps her up and checks that she's ok. Yep, she's right. Off they go back to their came. They ask me to play, but I'd rather watch.

For the last 14 hours, I have swung between feeling very old and feeling very young. I'm camping out with a group of nine girls (Joel was a ring-in) in the middle of the bush at the invitation of some friends and ex-neighbours of mine. I must admit, I didn't really want to go but I went for the sake of Ella who wasn't allowed to go unless I went. I had a ball. 

Last night I sat around the campfire with the girls and felt young as I listened to them tell about school and their friends there and the 'problems' they have with people there. I feel young as we reminisce about when we were neighbours. I feel young as we laugh over silly little things. But in the next instant I feel old when they ask me when I start TAFE. Tuesday. Oh. Then I feel all grown up when I slip in a little bit of 'wisdom'.

As I watch them playing footy, watch them cooking breakfast together, listen to their conversation and innocent giggles I marvel over the blessing of friendship. These 8 girls have a huge privilege that I was never really granted when I was little - the association with godly girls their age. They are young and they are learning (like the rest of us) but they'll press on holding hand and pull each other higher and higher. It makes me think back to my 'friends testimony'. Our God is so Precious. He knows what we need, when we need it.

 “I grew up just outside of Manjimup,WA on a secluded property where my parents, my grandparents and a handful of other staff ran a small health retreat. There were no other children on the property other then myself and my four siblings. My closest friend near my ages was still three years older then me and taking this age difference into account, our relationship was more of a worshiper/model sort. My very best friend however was my Grandma.

Grandma and I would spend hours and hours working and playing together, at home, at the health retreat and in the garden, bush and orchard. As a child, this fulfilled my need for friends and I was perfectly happy.

In 2003, the year I turned 10, my family and I shifted east, where Dad was to raise up a small missionary training school. Here I met two girls who were to become my best friends.

We interacted together as most teenage girls do, lots of chatting, giggling and planning for our lives. As we all went through a rebellious few years, we planned to move out of home as soon as possible and rent a flat together - as soon as we turned 17 and got our license.

This was our collective plan right up until 2010, when I met Jess and Ely. Now I began to associate with godly girls who genuinely wanted to do whats right, and this began to rub off on me. Soon I was spending much more time with Ely and Jess then the other girls and slowly we drifted apart. 

The older of my two friends soon moved out of home and we almost lost connection altogether but I was still at home, safe and sound. Happy and secure in my new friendships that were deepening daily.

Friends have had such and influence in my life. I am so thankful to God that he sent along the right friends just when I needed them, through every stage of my life. Then, it didn’t seem to be such a big thing but looking back on who and where I could have been today, I just praise God for sending me the right friends at the right time.”