a pocketful of people

Funny how God just sort of brings people in and out of your life. I read something today about relationships helping with a healing process.... and so I started pondering why people are consistently inconsistent. For a girl like me, consistency is a big deal. Even if you know me well, you may not know that consistency it is on my top 5 most important qualities in a person, and especially a friend. The thing is, I think I could count on one hand, and not even use all my fingers, and tell you how many people have been consistently one of my closest friends for over a year. Sad, right?

Well, that's not the point I'm trying to make.

It's more of a question, you see. I want to know if I could really look at every person that has at one time or another been what I would call a part of my life and be able to determine exactly what they offered, how they helped me, how I helped them, what God did with us. It's an interesting thought, but I know that God uses people to show you things.

I'm in the process of figuring out a few things about some current people in my life. Don't worry, it's nothing bad, (so don't go overanalyzing our friendship) but I'm wondering why God has placed them in my life for this time. What is the purpose? I'm beginning to look at life differently at how my relationships play into my personal refinement process. "Iron sharpens iron", we've heard said before. So, what part of me is being sharpened right now? Or is there a part that exists now? Who is doing it? Am I helping?

There are few people in the comings and goings of my two decades of life that I can say I have experience a strong sense of God's presence from. It's those people that I want to surround myself with. I just want to make sure that they want to surround themselves with me. Within the last couple of months, I have been fortunate enough to meet a handful of these type people, and all I can do is pray that I recognize what God is trying to show me/teach me through these friendships.

So, God.... let me gain from these relationships, but more importantly let me pour out into them so that we are mutually serving one another and also edifying You. Show me what it is you want me to learn from each person in my life, and use me to be a shining light in their spirit so that they can see more of who you are, and so that we can be strengthened in unity. Put people in my life that want to be consistent. I don't want the shallowness anymore, but people who want depth and growth. Amen.