the power of sisterhood: together we can defeat armies
Friendship

the power of sisterhood: together we can defeat armies

I signed up for a women’s retreat for our church, and the nerves of my introverted side made me anxious for the weekend. After I arrived and settled in the Southern California mountain retreat, the rhythm of the weekend allowed for depth and friendships to form.

On the final night of the retreat, the speaker shared the value of vulnerability in community, organically leading to beautiful moments with six new friends that night. One of those friends shared how God restored her marriage, and her authenticity trickled into every part of our veins.

Since we didn’t want our time together to come to a crashing end once we drove away from the mountains, we decided to start meeting twice a month in each other’s homes and build on the started foundation.

Through the decade that followed, our group of six became life to our bones. We walked through medical issues, raising kids, depression, financial and job challenges, marriage struggles, and celebrating major victories, among a plethora of other opportunities life threw at us.

We cried. We prayed. We laughed. We cheered.

It was as if we’d entered the story of the Israelites defeating the Amalekites. Joshua was on the front lines per Moses’ orders.

How to Cultivate Trust in Friendships
Friendship

How to Cultivate Trust in Friendships

“Elizabeth, I trust that you’ll make a good decision,” said my friend as we tromped through the woods on a long hike where we had been discussing a difficult situation I was in at the time. Not only was the decision tricky but also it involved a personally emotionally charged issue from my friend’s past.

Instead of telling me what I should do, recommending five books for me to read, and then praying for me in quivering tones, my friend had simply shared her experience and then let me know that I had her trust and support no matter what.

Her vote of confidence meant the world to me and put me in a place of peace with myself and peace with her. I knew that she was the type of person whom I was totally safe to share my life and struggles with. And her example really challenged me to reconsider how I respond when friends come to me with difficult situations, particularly those that trigger something emotional from my past.

My Own Kitchen Window

My Own Kitchen Window

My kitchen window isn’t very big and it’s nothing fancy. Just a little kitchen window above my sink with some pretty fabric draped across the top. But it is my kitchen window. The one my dear husband put in just for me.

When we first got married I became homesick for everything familiar that I had left behind; for the view from my mom’s kitchen window. I had a lot to learn about life and love along with some growing up to do.

The End.

The End.