Latest / Praise, Prayer & Protein / Adult Friendships: Finding Your People & Navigating Changing Seasons

Transcript

Adult Friendships: Finding Your People & Navigating Changing Seasons · Praise, Prayer & Protein

• 0:09
  SPEAKER_00: Hey, I'm Kate, mom of seven, coffee lover, and believer in finding joy in every season of motherhood.
• 0:16
  SPEAKER_00: This is Praise, Prayer, and Protein, where we talk faith, family, frugal living, and the real life mom hacks that make it all work.
• 0:24
  SPEAKER_00: Let's dive in.
• 0:26
  SPEAKER_00: Hey friends, and welcome back to another episode of Praise, Prayer, and Protein.
• 0:32
  SPEAKER_00: I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend.
• 0:35
  SPEAKER_00: We sure did.
• 0:36
  SPEAKER_00: I feel like I have so much to catch you up on before we jump into today's topic.
• 0:41
  SPEAKER_00: We started our weekend with a trip to my hometown to visit my parents at our family cottage.
• 0:47
  SPEAKER_00: And oh my word, the drive down was absolutely stunning.
• 0:52
  SPEAKER_00: The colors of the leaves right now are just so incredible.
• 0:57
  SPEAKER_00: We spent the day there doing all kinds of fun fall things.
• 1:00
  SPEAKER_00: We had a bonfire and roasted hot dogs for lunch.
• 1:03
  SPEAKER_00: The kids carved pumpkins, and let me tell you, they did such a great job.
• 1:07
  SPEAKER_00: They are so creative.
• 1:09
  SPEAKER_00: And they made homemade apple juice with my dad to enjoy with our Thanksgiving meal.
• 1:14
  SPEAKER_00: Then, of course, I had to take my kids for a walk through the campground because that's where I grew up.
• 1:19
  SPEAKER_00: And on our way walking through, we always stop and play at the playground where I played as a kid.
• 1:25
  SPEAKER_00: And can I just say that the 90s playground equipment is still well and alive there?
• 1:31
  SPEAKER_00: I'm talking about trying to get them to balance on the old-fashioned teeter-totterers, the stainless steel slide swings that make you feel like you are flying so high.
• 1:40
  SPEAKER_00: And of course, we had a few rounds of good old tetherball.
• 1:45
  SPEAKER_00: What a treasure it is to be able to take my kids somewhere that I grew up playing all the time.
• 1:51
  SPEAKER_00: I love that my kids get to experience some of those very same things.
• 1:56
  SPEAKER_00: Then on Sunday morning, we went to church, which is always one of my favorite parts of the weekend.
• 2:01
  SPEAKER_00: And afterwards, we packed up our family and friends and headed to cheer on Abe at his football game.
• 2:08
  SPEAKER_00: We love watching him play football.
• 2:10
  SPEAKER_00: And of course, it's so much fun when uh we have friends and their kids are also playing on the team.
• 2:16
  SPEAKER_00: It was a really sunny day, but of course it is fall here, so it was getting cooler.
• 2:21
  SPEAKER_00: But let me just tell you about the real game winner that day was my heated seat from Costco.
• 2:27
  SPEAKER_00: Friends, I am not kidding.
• 2:28
  SPEAKER_00: Last year, Micah bought me the heated seat from Costco to go camping for our first time because he knows I hate being cold.
• 2:35
  SPEAKER_00: So sitting around the fire with a heated chair is a game changer.
• 2:39
  SPEAKER_00: But if you are a sport parent, this also came in handy in the spring when we were watching uh soccer and rugby, and now it is coming in clutch for football.
• 2:51
  SPEAKER_00: They were on sale last week, so my parents picked up chairs.
• 2:54
  SPEAKER_00: Also, our friends had chairs there.
• 2:57
  SPEAKER_00: Literally, I hope they're still on sale for you when you're hearing this because they were like$55 or$59.
• 3:02
  SPEAKER_00: And it is the best thing if you are a sport parent that you will ever buy for the sidelines, because there is nothing better than having a toasty warm seat with a nice blanket over you, watching your kid play fall and spring sports.
• 3:17
  SPEAKER_00: I'm sure in the summer heat it might not be as beneficial, but definitely in those off seasons, it was the real winner.
• 3:24
  SPEAKER_00: Then we all rush back today spring for our big family Thanksgiving supper.
• 3:30
  SPEAKER_00: If you didn't get to catch the episode with the three boys on last week, they talk all about it.
• 3:34
  SPEAKER_00: Go check it out.
• 3:36
  SPEAKER_00: It was a really cute, cute episode.
• 3:38
  SPEAKER_00: And when I mean big, I think we were 30 to 40 people.
• 3:42
  SPEAKER_00: On Sunday, we had three turkeys, uh, lots of potatoes and carrots that the kids uh picked from our garden.
• 3:50
  SPEAKER_00: We had stuffing and squash and rolls, delicious gravy, and of course, an entire table full of desserts.
• 3:57
  SPEAKER_00: It was just such a great weekend.
• 3:59
  SPEAKER_00: I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving too, and that you definitely gobbled until you wobbled.
• 4:06
  SPEAKER_00: Now, speaking of being surrounded by people you love, that actually brings me to today's topic because we are going to be talking all about adult friendships.
• 4:16
  SPEAKER_00: How do we find friends as adults?
• 4:18
  SPEAKER_00: How do we maintain those friendships when life gets busy?
• 4:21
  SPEAKER_00: What happens when friendships change?
• 4:24
  SPEAKER_00: And how can we be really good friends as busy moms to the people that God has placed in our lives?
• 4:31
  SPEAKER_00: This conversation all started because last week I got the pleasure of being a guest on the Back Corner podcast.
• 4:37
  SPEAKER_00: If you have never listened to it, it's hosted by two of my pastor friends, Brent Ingersoll and AJ Thomas.
• 4:43
  SPEAKER_00: They sit in a podcast studio called The Back Corner.
• 4:46
  SPEAKER_00: It actually is where I recorded my first few episodes of this podcast.
• 4:51
  SPEAKER_00: And it's actually where I got the oomph to start my own podcast when they had me on as a guest for their very first time.
• 4:58
  SPEAKER_00: But they talk all kinds of random, funny, and sometimes some meaningful things.
• 5:04
  SPEAKER_00: And this was my third time joining them, which is always super fun.
• 5:08
  SPEAKER_00: This time they invited me on there to talk about adult friendships.
• 5:13
  SPEAKER_00: They asked what friendships look like when we get old and how do we make friends and how do we maintain them?
• 5:19
  SPEAKER_00: And we had such a great conversation that I thought, you know what?
• 5:22
  SPEAKER_00: I'm gonna talk all about this to you guys.
• 5:24
  SPEAKER_00: Because if there's one thing I have always loved, it has been people.
• 5:28
  SPEAKER_00: I love having people over.
• 5:30
  SPEAKER_00: I love hosting, I love going for coffee, I love doing things together.
• 5:35
  SPEAKER_00: And I have learned so much about friendship through the different seasons of my life.
• 5:39
  SPEAKER_00: But I also know that friendship isn't always easy, especially as adults and as busy moms.
• 5:46
  SPEAKER_00: So I want to share some of my story and then give you some really practical things you can do, whether you're looking for friends or trying to stay connected with the ones you already have.
• 5:56
  SPEAKER_00: I became a Christian in 2002 while I was working at a summer camp.
• 5:59
  SPEAKER_00: And if you've ever worked at summer camp, you know camp life is its own little world.
• 6:04
  SPEAKER_00: You're living together, working together, eating together, ministering together.
• 6:09
  SPEAKER_00: You're basically doing everything together.
• 6:11
  SPEAKER_00: And I think that's where I really developed a love for Christian community.
• 6:15
  SPEAKER_00: Now, I, as you know, am an only child.
• 6:18
  SPEAKER_00: So I had always loved being with my friends.
• 6:20
  SPEAKER_00: I have such sweet memories of my friendships growing up, being part of my friends' families and spending time at their house and just doing life together.
• 6:28
  SPEAKER_00: I still love my high school friends.
• 6:30
  SPEAKER_00: But Camp introduced me to a different kind of friendship: a friendship where you could pray together, talk about your faith, encourage each other, and really grow together.
• 6:38
  SPEAKER_00: And when I went back to university after that summer, I knew one Christian guy who introduced me to a girl who would become one of my very, very best friends.
• 6:48
  SPEAKER_00: And when I say very best friends, I mean she's pretty much like a sister to me now.
• 6:52
  SPEAKER_00: My kids call her Auntie, and she has been one of the biggest blessings in my life.
• 6:57
  SPEAKER_00: We don't live in the same place anymore, and our friendship looks completely different than it did back then.
• 7:02
  SPEAKER_00: But you know those friends where you can go months and months without seeing each other, and then the second year together, it's like absolutely no time has passed.
• 7:11
  SPEAKER_00: That's her.
• 7:12
  SPEAKER_00: We just pick up right where we left off, and back in university, we actually lived together.
• 7:16
  SPEAKER_00: And let me tell you, if you know me, I was pretty much exactly the same back then, just with a lot less gray hair.
• 7:23
  SPEAKER_00: We hosted dinner parties, we had people over for brunch after church, we threw theme parties, we had people over on the weekend and during the week.
• 7:30
  SPEAKER_00: I just loved every minute of it.
• 7:33
  SPEAKER_00: And I really learned how to enjoy opening my home and doing life with other people.
• 7:37
  SPEAKER_00: But when Mike and I got married in 2005 and we moved to Moncton, it was the first time I felt really alone.
• 7:43
  SPEAKER_00: Neither of us was from Moncton.
• 7:45
  SPEAKER_00: We didn't have an established church community and we were just newly married, figuring out life, and I didn't have that circle of friends around me that I was so used to.
• 7:54
  SPEAKER_00: And I remember feeling really lonely during those first few months.
• 7:57
  SPEAKER_00: We started visiting different churches and eventually we found glad tidings.
• 8:02
  SPEAKER_00: A group of women took me in.
• 8:03
  SPEAKER_00: They invited me to their Friday night prayer group, and we started spending time together as young adults, married couples, and singled friends.
• 8:10
  SPEAKER_00: And it was a game changer for me.
• 8:12
  SPEAKER_00: I finally felt I had people again.
• 8:14
  SPEAKER_00: Then when I became a mom, friendship became important in a whole new way.
• 8:18
  SPEAKER_00: We only had one vehicle at the time, so Micah would take it to work and I was home alone with little Evan.
• 8:23
  SPEAKER_00: Another mom reached out and invited me to go to a mom's group.
• 8:26
  SPEAKER_00: It was actually a new neighbor that we had just got because we moved into our house when I was pregnant with Ebon.
• 8:31
  SPEAKER_00: And at this time, he probably was just a few months old.
• 8:35
  SPEAKER_00: She offered to take me.
• 8:36
  SPEAKER_00: And friends, that invitation meant so much because I couldn't just jump in a car and go somewhere.
• 8:42
  SPEAKER_00: I actually needed someone's help to get there.
• 8:45
  SPEAKER_00: We started going to this wonderful mom's group at Moncton Wesleyan, which is now Title Church.
• 8:50
  SPEAKER_00: There was child care, there were other moms.
• 8:52
  SPEAKER_00: I could sit down and drink hot coffee.
• 8:55
  SPEAKER_00: Can we just appreciate what a gift that is when you have little ones at home?
• 8:59
  SPEAKER_00: And I had people to talk to, adult people.
• 9:02
  SPEAKER_00: I looked forward to that group every single week.
• 9:05
  SPEAKER_00: And from there, some of us started a little Friday morning coffee club.
• 9:09
  SPEAKER_00: We would take turns going to each other's house, letting the kids play, and just spending time together.
• 9:14
  SPEAKER_00: And this summer, one of the kids from that old playgroup was talking with my kids, and we were laughing about how we used to hang out when they were babies.
• 9:21
  SPEAKER_00: I just thought that was so cool.
• 9:23
  SPEAKER_00: All because someone invited me and brought me to that mom's group.
• 9:28
  SPEAKER_00: Which brings me to my first friendship tip.
• 9:31
  SPEAKER_00: Go where the people are.
• 9:51
  SPEAKER_00: If you're a mom with little kids, go where other moms are: moms groups, playgroups, the library, swimming lessons, church events, even just the playground, you're gonna meet people who are in the similar season of life.
• 10:03
  SPEAKER_00: And you might not connect with everybody, but there could be one person there who becomes really wonderful friend to you.
• 10:09
  SPEAKER_00: And if you're a young adult, the same things applies.
• 10:12
  SPEAKER_00: I tell my older kids all the time go where other young adults are.
• 10:16
  SPEAKER_00: Go to young adult events, go to retreats, join a life group or a home church.
• 10:22
  SPEAKER_00: If you're at university, go to clubs on campus.
• 10:25
  SPEAKER_00: You have to get yourself, you have to give yourself opportunities to meet people.
• 10:29
  SPEAKER_00: And I want to say something to women who already have community.
• 10:34
  SPEAKER_00: Be the person who invites somebody in because I can tell you from experience how much that mattered.
• 10:40
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe you know a mom who's new to your area.
• 10:43
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe she doesn't drive, maybe she's shy, maybe she doesn't even know the group exists.
• 10:48
  SPEAKER_00: Just invite her, offer to pick her up, introduce her to somebody, sit with her.
• 10:52
  SPEAKER_00: You have no idea how much that invitation might mean.
• 10:55
  SPEAKER_00: I still remember the woman who did that for me 19 years ago.
• 11:00
  SPEAKER_00: And sometimes just messaging someone to say, hey, I'm going to be here at this time, so they know that somebody familiar is going to be there is going to be huge.
• 11:08
  SPEAKER_00: Number two is learning that friendships change with the seasons.
• 11:12
  SPEAKER_00: Something I've learned as I've gotten older is not every friendship is going to look the same in every season.
• 11:18
  SPEAKER_00: And that's okay.
• 11:19
  SPEAKER_00: When you're newly married, maybe you have other newly married friends and you're going to go on double dates and spend evenings together.
• 11:26
  SPEAKER_00: Then the babies come along and suddenly you're home all day with a baby or toddler.
• 11:30
  SPEAKER_00: You have lots of opportunities for play dates and coffee mornings.
• 11:33
  SPEAKER_00: But then somebody goes back to work or the kids start school or everybody is running to sports and youth group and piano lessons.
• 11:40
  SPEAKER_00: And all of a sudden, that friend you used to see three times a week is somebody you might see once a month.
• 11:45
  SPEAKER_00: And I think sometimes we can take that personally.
• 11:49
  SPEAKER_00: We think, well, she doesn't have time for us anymore, or I'm always the one trying to make the plans.
• 11:54
  SPEAKER_00: But maybe she's just in a different season.
• 11:56
  SPEAKER_00: She works full-time.
• 11:58
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe her kids have activities every evening.
• 12:00
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe she's exhausted.
• 12:02
  SPEAKER_00: And it doesn't mean she doesn't love you.
• 12:04
  SPEAKER_00: It means her capacity has changed.
• 12:06
  SPEAKER_00: Being a good friend means learning how to adapt to the season you're both in.
• 12:12
  SPEAKER_00: And I think that's something we really need to give each other a lot more grace for.
• 12:16
  SPEAKER_00: Number three, you need to make friendship fit into your real life.
• 12:20
  SPEAKER_00: One of my favorite things to do now is find ways to spend time with friends while we're already doing things because I don't always have the extra three hours in my week to go out for coffee.
• 12:29
  SPEAKER_00: I've got seven kids.
• 12:31
  SPEAKER_00: There's a lot of places I need to be.
• 12:33
  SPEAKER_00: So sometimes I just say, hey, I'm going to the city to do groceries.
• 12:36
  SPEAKER_00: You want to come?
• 12:37
  SPEAKER_00: And then we walk around Costco or Walmart or the grocery store together.
• 12:41
  SPEAKER_00: We're getting our errands done, but we're also catching up.
• 12:44
  SPEAKER_00: And it's so fun.
• 12:45
  SPEAKER_00: Another thing we do is when our kids are at youth group.
• 12:48
  SPEAKER_00: We're already driving them there.
• 12:49
  SPEAKER_00: We're already going to be waiting for them.
• 12:51
  SPEAKER_00: So why not spend time together?
• 12:53
  SPEAKER_00: Sometimes we find a classroom at church or sit in the lobby.
• 12:56
  SPEAKER_00: Sometimes we go for a walk at the cuplex or we just hang out while our kids are doing their thing.
• 13:00
  SPEAKER_00: It doesn't have to look like a fancy coffee date.
• 13:03
  SPEAKER_00: You don't have to spend money.
• 13:04
  SPEAKER_00: You don't have to make it some huge event.
• 13:06
  SPEAKER_00: Sometimes friendship is just saying, I'm going to be here at this time.
• 13:09
  SPEAKER_00: Do you want to join me?
• 13:10
  SPEAKER_00: And I think that is just such a practical way to maintain your friendship in this busy season.
• 13:15
  SPEAKER_00: The Monday night youth things have literally been a game changer for many of us because we don't get to see each other all week.
• 13:22
  SPEAKER_00: That's sort of our time.
• 13:23
  SPEAKER_00: Kids are at youth group, we're at mom's group.
• 13:25
  SPEAKER_00: Number four is learn how your friends like to communicate.
• 13:30
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, can we just talk about our phones for a second?
• 13:32
  SPEAKER_00: Because I think sometimes we forget these things are actual telephones.
• 13:36
  SPEAKER_00: You can call people.
• 13:37
  SPEAKER_00: I know wild concept.
• 13:38
  SPEAKER_00: Our moms used to sit on the phone and chat with their friends.
• 13:41
  SPEAKER_00: And I think we need to bring some of that back.
• 13:43
  SPEAKER_00: I have friends who love to FaceTime.
• 13:45
  SPEAKER_00: My friend April, who was on season one, is one of those friends.
• 13:48
  SPEAKER_00: We can go a month without really talking.
• 13:50
  SPEAKER_00: We'll send a few texts here and there.
• 13:52
  SPEAKER_00: And then one day we'll FaceTime, we'll laugh, we'll catch up, and we'll just be silly together.
• 13:56
  SPEAKER_00: And it's wonderful.
• 13:57
  SPEAKER_00: But I also know that not everybody likes to FaceTime.
• 14:00
  SPEAKER_00: Some of my friends would rather I never call them unexpectedly in their entire life.
• 14:05
  SPEAKER_00: And that's okay.
• 14:07
  SPEAKER_00: They want that text, and that's okay.
• 14:10
  SPEAKER_00: Some friends love voice messages and some love sending reels back and forth.
• 14:14
  SPEAKER_00: Some want to make plans and talk in person.
• 14:16
  SPEAKER_00: The point is to learn how your friends like to connect and don't underest underestimate those little messages.
• 14:22
  SPEAKER_00: A funny reel, a quick voice message, a picture that reminds you of somebody.
• 14:26
  SPEAKER_00: Those little things keep your friendships going even when you don't have time to sit down together.
• 14:31
  SPEAKER_00: Number five is my favorite friendship hack.
• 14:33
  SPEAKER_00: It's my friend's favorite list.
• 14:35
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, I have to share this because it's one of my favorite things and it actually works as a mom hack too.
• 14:41
  SPEAKER_00: So get ready to take notes on this one.
• 14:44
  SPEAKER_00: In my notes app, I have a note called friend's favorites.
• 14:48
  SPEAKER_00: And whenever I hear a friend mention something they love, I write it down.
• 14:52
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe we're at a favorite things party and someone brings a certain chocolate bar.
• 14:57
  SPEAKER_00: I ask, is that your favorite?
• 14:59
  SPEAKER_00: And if they say yes, it's going in my notes.
• 15:01
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe someone loves a particular kind of tea or a certain coffee or mini eggs or a particular snack, I write it down because gift giving is not normally my biggest love language.
• 15:11
  SPEAKER_00: I love hosting people, spending time with them, but thinking of the perfect little gift doesn't always come easily to me.
• 15:17
  SPEAKER_00: So now when it's somebody's birthday or I want to drop something off to encourage them, I open up my notes and there it is.
• 15:24
  SPEAKER_00: Their favorite tea, their favorite chocolate, their favorite treat.
• 15:27
  SPEAKER_00: And I can pick something up that I know they'll enjoy.
• 15:29
  SPEAKER_00: I have the most random people in that note.
• 15:32
  SPEAKER_00: If we've ever spent time together, there's a pretty good chance I have something written down about you.
• 15:36
  SPEAKER_00: And moms, this works amazing for your kids, especially with Christmas coming.
• 15:41
  SPEAKER_00: I keep track of their favorite treats.
• 15:43
  SPEAKER_00: In my notes app, it's called Kids' Favorites.
• 15:46
  SPEAKER_00: One likes Mike and Ike.
• 15:47
  SPEAKER_00: So if he's babysitting for me while I'm out running errands, I'll bring a little box home for him.
• 15:52
  SPEAKER_00: One loves a very specific kind of gummy bear, the other dairy milk bars, another Mr.
• 15:58
  SPEAKER_00: Big.
• 15:58
  SPEAKER_00: Somebody loves honey barbecue sun chips and another person loves spicy Cheetos.
• 16:02
  SPEAKER_00: And when it comes time to fill those Christmas stockings, I already know exactly what everybody loves.
• 16:08
  SPEAKER_00: Or if somebody has had a hard day or finishes a big test, I can pick up their little favorite treat.
• 16:13
  SPEAKER_00: It's just a simple way of saying, I know you, I noticed what you like, and I was thinking about you.
• 16:18
  SPEAKER_00: And that is the beautiful part of friendship.
• 16:22
  SPEAKER_00: Number six is don't wait for someone else to reach out.
• 16:26
  SPEAKER_00: If you want to be a good friend, be a good friend first.
• 16:29
  SPEAKER_00: This is one of this is one that I feel really strong about.
• 16:33
  SPEAKER_00: If you are thinking about someone, text them.
• 16:35
  SPEAKER_00: Don't sit there thinking, well, she hasn't texted me, so I'm not gonna text her.
• 16:40
  SPEAKER_00: Or I'm always the one reaching out.
• 16:42
  SPEAKER_00: Now I understand that friendships have some level of mutual care.
• 16:46
  SPEAKER_00: And there are times when you need healthy boundaries, but I also think sometimes we can get caught up in keeping score that we miss the opportunity to encourage people.
• 16:55
  SPEAKER_00: I've spent, I have sent so many random texts over the years just, hey, I'm thinking about you today.
• 17:01
  SPEAKER_00: Hope you're having a great day.
• 17:02
  SPEAKER_00: No strings attached, no expectations that they need to make plans with me, just encouragement.
• 17:07
  SPEAKER_00: And you would not believe how many times someone has responded with, I really needed that today.
• 17:12
  SPEAKER_00: Or they've sent me a voice message crying because they were having the worst day.
• 17:16
  SPEAKER_00: And I had no idea.
• 17:17
  SPEAKER_00: I was just thinking about them.
• 17:19
  SPEAKER_00: I remember going through a season when I was feeling really discouraged because I felt like I was always the one reaching out.
• 17:24
  SPEAKER_00: And a friend shared this picture with me of being a lighthouse.
• 17:27
  SPEAKER_00: The lighthouse doesn't stop shining because there aren't any ships coming by.
• 17:31
  SPEAKER_00: It's just there, it's shining, it's doing what it was created to do.
• 17:35
  SPEAKER_00: That really stuck with me.
• 17:37
  SPEAKER_00: I realized I didn't want to stop being an encourager because I was worried about whether people were reaching out to me enough.
• 17:44
  SPEAKER_00: I want to be someone who encourages people.
• 17:47
  SPEAKER_00: That's part of who I am.
• 17:49
  SPEAKER_00: And I don't want to let offense take that away.
• 17:52
  SPEAKER_00: So if someone comes to mind today, send them a message.
• 17:55
  SPEAKER_00: You never know what kind of day they're having.
• 17:59
  SPEAKER_00: Number seven is show up when it really matters.
• 18:02
  SPEAKER_00: This one makes me a little bit emotional because I've been thinking about this summer in my gallbladder surgery and how my friends showed up.
• 18:10
  SPEAKER_00: We are all so busy.
• 18:13
  SPEAKER_00: Some of these friends I don't even see every week.
• 18:15
  SPEAKER_00: Some I might not have had a long conversation with in a few months.
• 18:19
  SPEAKER_00: But when I ended up in the hospital and then came home to recover, people showed up.
• 18:23
  SPEAKER_00: They brought meals, they brought flowers, they brought treats, they sent messages, they checked in, and it meant so much.
• 18:30
  SPEAKER_00: And it reminded me that a friendship isn't measured by how often you see each other.
• 18:34
  SPEAKER_00: Sometimes it's measured by who shows up when life gets hard.
• 18:38
  SPEAKER_00: And I think this is one of the most beautiful things about having friendships rooted in faith.
• 18:43
  SPEAKER_00: Some of my closest friends now are women I've known for years.
• 18:46
  SPEAKER_00: We've gone to church together, we've been in small groups together, we've prayed together, we've walked through really difficult seasons together, we've celebrated wonderful things together, but we've also had some really hard conversations together.
• 18:58
  SPEAKER_00: And we continue to choose one another, even when we're busy, even when we're in different seasons, even when we don't see each other as often as we'd like to, we keep showing up.
• 19:08
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm so thankful for that.
• 19:10
  SPEAKER_00: There's one more thing I really want to talk about before we finish.
• 19:14
  SPEAKER_00: I once heard on Annie F.
• 19:15
  SPEAKER_00: Downs, she was talking about a council of friendship.
• 19:19
  SPEAKER_00: And I loved that picture because I think sometimes we expect one friendship to meet every single need we have.
• 19:25
  SPEAKER_00: And that's a lot to put on one person.
• 19:28
  SPEAKER_00: But the reality is we have different friends for different parts of our lives.
• 19:32
  SPEAKER_00: I have content creator friends.
• 19:34
  SPEAKER_00: They understand the weird world of social media and making reels and talking about algorithms.
• 19:39
  SPEAKER_00: I have friends I go to when I need prayer or spiritual encouragement.
• 19:43
  SPEAKER_00: I have friends I talk to about my marriage.
• 19:45
  SPEAKER_00: I have friends who know the nitty-gritty details of my life.
• 19:48
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm talking every nitty-ditty gritty tail, nitty gritty detail of my life.
• 19:53
  SPEAKER_00: I have friends who are just so funny and I love being with them because they just make me laugh so, so much.
• 20:01
  SPEAKER_00: We make ridiculous reels together and laugh until I cannot breathe.
• 20:05
  SPEAKER_00: I've got pickleball friends.
• 20:06
  SPEAKER_00: I have friends because our kids are friends.
• 20:09
  SPEAKER_00: Mike and I have couple friends.
• 20:10
  SPEAKER_00: Some of those couples are people we have really deep conversations with, and some are just ones we love to go out and have fun with.
• 20:18
  SPEAKER_00: And that's okay.
• 20:19
  SPEAKER_00: Not every friend has to fill every role in your life.
• 20:22
  SPEAKER_00: We're all different people and we have different interests, different personalities, and different gifts.
• 20:27
  SPEAKER_00: And I think it's really beautiful that God gives us different people for different parts of our lives.
• 20:32
  SPEAKER_00: You don't have to force every friendship into the same box.
• 20:36
  SPEAKER_00: Some friendships are deep and personal, some are built around a shared interest, some are seasonal, some last decades, but all of them can be very meaningful.
• 20:47
  SPEAKER_00: So if you're listening today and you've been feeling really lonely, I want to encourage you.
• 20:51
  SPEAKER_00: Friendship is worth putting yourself out there for.
• 20:54
  SPEAKER_00: It might feel really awkward to go to a group where you don't know anybody.
• 20:58
  SPEAKER_00: It might feel uncomfortable to invite someone for coffee.
• 21:02
  SPEAKER_00: You might have to be the one who initiates, but don't give up.
• 21:05
  SPEAKER_00: And if you're in a season where you already have wonderful friends, I want to encourage you to be intentional with them.
• 21:10
  SPEAKER_00: Be flexible, give grace, make time where you can, send the texts, remember their favorite things, show up when life gets hard, and don't expect every friendship to look exactly the same.
• 21:21
  SPEAKER_00: I look back over my life from summer camp to university to being a young mom in Moncton to where we are now, and I can see how God has used friendship in every single season.
• 21:33
  SPEAKER_00: Some of those friendships look different now.
• 21:35
  SPEAKER_00: Some people I don't see very often or even anymore.
• 21:39
  SPEAKER_00: And some are still the people I talk to every week.
• 21:43
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm so thankful for all of them.
• 21:45
  SPEAKER_00: And I think one of the greatest gifts of friendship is having people who continue to choose you, even as life changes.
• 21:52
  SPEAKER_00: This season we have been ending a little different with a praise, a prayer, and protein for the week.
• 21:56
  SPEAKER_00: So my praise for this week is the Harvest Women's Conference, which is coming up.
• 22:02
  SPEAKER_00: So this will air Thursday, and we are heading there Friday.
• 22:05
  SPEAKER_00: If you know me, you know how excited I am about this.
• 22:08
  SPEAKER_00: I am going to be in a building with approximately a thousand other women.
• 22:13
  SPEAKER_00: And I get to be on the greeting team, which is basically one of my favorite places to be because I love seeing people.
• 22:19
  SPEAKER_00: Friends from church, friends from other churches, friends from when we lived in Moncton, online friends, people I haven't seen in ages.
• 22:28
  SPEAKER_00: And I am just really, really excited to spend the night in the hotel with my friends.
• 22:33
  SPEAKER_00: It is going to be so, so fun.
• 22:35
  SPEAKER_00: And of course, I love the times of worship together, and I am really excited for what the speakers are going to bring.
• 22:43
  SPEAKER_00: My prayer for this week is harvest.
• 22:45
  SPEAKER_00: There are some really big things I am personally praying for and asking God to move in.
• 22:50
  SPEAKER_00: I'm praying that he meets me there this weekend at Harvest.
• 22:54
  SPEAKER_00: But I'm also playing for every woman who walks through the doors that they would encounter God's love in a really personal way because his love actually changes everything.
• 23:04
  SPEAKER_00: It changes how we see ourselves.
• 23:05
  SPEAKER_00: It roots us and grounds us in who he says we are.
• 23:09
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm praying that this weekend a thousand women would experience that.
• 23:12
  SPEAKER_00: And my protein this week, can we just talk about it?
• 23:15
  SPEAKER_00: Turkey leftovers.
• 23:17
  SPEAKER_00: Because we just had Thanksgiving and there are so many turkey leftover recipes.
• 23:22
  SPEAKER_00: Hot turkey sandwiches, turkey soup, turkey enchiladas, turkey pot pie, all things turkey.
• 23:28
  SPEAKER_00: It is basically a whole week of easy protein-packed meals here for us.
• 23:32
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, friends, that is it for this week.
• 23:35
  SPEAKER_00: I hope this episode has encouraged you to think about friendships in your own life.
• 23:39
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe there's someone you've been meaning to reach out to, and maybe there's a group you've been thinking about joining.
• 23:44
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe there's a friend you haven't seen in ages, or maybe there's a mom in your life who just needs someone to invite her along.
• 23:50
  SPEAKER_00: Whatever it is, I want to encourage you to take the step this week.
• 23:54
  SPEAKER_00: Because some of the sweetest friendships in my life started with a really simple invitation.
• 24:00
  SPEAKER_00: And you never know what God might do with yours.
• 24:03
  SPEAKER_00: And if you have a friend who needs a little bit of encouragement today, please send her this episode.
• 24:08
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe it'll be just the thing that reminds her she is not alone.
• 24:13
  SPEAKER_00: Thanks so much for hanging out with me this week on Praise, Prayer, and Protein.
• 24:16
  SPEAKER_00: I'll see you next week.
• 24:18
  SPEAKER_00: Bye, friend.
• 24:20
  SPEAKER_00: Protein carry me through.