senior moments.

And so starts my blog.

This past weekend I had the opportunity and privilege of taking one of my best friend's senior pictures. I was absolutely thrilled when she asked me! I took over five hundred pictures of Sammie, lucky for you I'm only including a few of my favorites. From peach and pecan orchards, to churches and barns, we traveled all over the place to get some awesome shots. Many people would consider taking pictures for almost six hours torture, but we had an absolute blast.

My dad has challenged my to stick to my purpose and to consider what true friendships are in this post. And it really got me thinking about the relationships that God would have of His children. Being created in the image of God means that we were made to have and develop relationships with others. As friends are a gift from God, we are to encourage one another in Christ, as it is the most important aspect of any relationship.  God tells us in His word how we should describe our actions towards others - it is, of course, love –

"Love is patient, kind, it does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud; it is never rude, nor self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrong. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, and always perseveres."  

Jesus talks about friends in John 15.  He says,

 "My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.  Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.  You are my friends if you do what I command."  

While the Lord gives us earthly friendships, Jesus is the best friend we could ever have. Earthly relationships will fail and disappoint us time and time again, but Jesus is the only one who will never leave us. Just as John 15 explains, a true friend is one that would die for those he cares about.

Jesus did.

If we think about it in terms of our own earthly relationships, dying for our friends, the fact that Jesus gave up His life for us should never cease to astound and amaze us. Once we grasp hold of this truth, our earthly friendships will be forever altered, and our relationship with Christ will grow continuously. Friendship in the biblical sense must flow through what Christ has done for us and what He is doing now on our behalf.  As we develop our "friendship" with Christ we truly can become friends with others who also know and love Christ. Jesus will always be our best friend.    

Mary Catherine



my personal favorite.