A Far Away Friend

This last year a dear lady friend of ours went back to the mission field after a few months medical leave. To not compromise her work in the area she is in, I’m not at liberty to share her name or her location or any of the pictures we have. While she was home in the states, the children and I formed a very sweet and strong bond of friendship with her. We spent many nights gathered around the piano as she would play and sing songs she’s written – she is so very talented. And she would ask the teens to join in once they’d have the tune and they would sing along and play guitar some. After a good meal, we would gather around scrap booking supplies and she’d inspire us to design the most beautiful cards. We’d play games and talk and laugh late into the night. She’d challenge us to go on new adventures. Taking a trip with her was so much fun because we would stop (at some spot that we would have passed on the road many times) and we would explore and would fall in love with the beauty of our Lord’s creation again at a previously undiscovered place. We would talk about our relationship with our Lord, pray together, laugh and cry together. We took walks together, she took the teens canoeing when she took her niece canoeing, took them out for treats and spent time listening and loving.

This last weekend, it was music recital time.And last year, our now Far-Away Friend went with us. I was missing her dearly. We were sad to see her go, but rejoiced that she was doing what the Lord called her to do. Today a package came in the mail from her. Our *Far Away Friend* sent pictures and bookmarks that she had made. Just last night I started reading “And First We Have Coffee” by Margaret Jensen and when my eyes got to heavy to continue reading, I put a sheet from my note pad in the book because I had used all the bookmarks in my nightstand. God is so good! And here are some bracelets she sent us for Mother’s Day. Audra’s, Victoria Leigh’sAnd my selection.This year the teens played their piano and violin selections for recital as usual. And then, Audra ventured into a new area by her teacher’s request. New *things* keep coming into our lives and I want to be more aware of these new *things* and not miss anything the LORD has for us. The Lord is obviously also ending some *things* in our lives too. The music teacher asked Audra to choreograph “The Cat and The Mouse”. After several rehearsals and hard work,They performed splendidly!
The cat found her claws at a garage sale for a few coins!

Here’s a picture of Audra (the choreographer) with pianist, the mouse and cat and their music teacher.

Dear Lord,
You know how much I miss my *Far Away Friend*
And how very thankful I am for the packages she did send

Just when I needed an encouraging, friendly lift

From across the oceans came her sweet and so timely gift

Thank You Lord for my now *Far Away Friend*
And I thank you Lord that a friendship with You, never, on Your part, ends
You are always there, even when I feel alone because someone is gone for whom I deeply care
Let me focus on You, whom ALL my burdens did bear

Let me thank You for the Word and thank You for the cross
For a friend that gives up worldly goods and counts them as loss
Thank You that when I feel lonely and am missing a friend
You remind me that You are The Presence that is always with me to the end

Let me focus on the eternal and not the gaping friendship loss I feel and see
Things are going on in the heavenlies, that I do not know, that are much higher than me
So Lord, I praise You because even in this distance You’ve ordained, You are at work
Let me not be distracted by what I feel or see, Your will, in me, not to shirk

Let me be busy about Your kingdom agenda as You’ve intended
Let me see this departure as part of Your plan and see it as most splendid
Thank You Lord for the gifts from my Far Away Friend that were sweet music to my soul
But let me look to You alone, to fill me up, to complete me and make me whole

As my Far Away Friend plants the seeds of Your Word on foreign soil
Let her know that in You she labors and reward her hourly, vigilant toil
I ask for Your blessings, the richest heavenly kind
To be poured out, in full, on her spirit, body and mind.

In this time of an earthly friendship separation
Let Your Presence by my daily, hourly, needed declaration
Let me be aware of any and all things new
Let my heart beat in rhythm, not to others, but, alone to You. Amen.