Tonight, one of my more distant friends was having a hard night. Honestly, I probably wouldn't have thought much of it, but something inside me said that I needed to do something. Seeing that I'm not best friends with this person, it was hard for me to make that leap and reach out my hand, but I knew I had to. If I didn't, I knew I would regret it. Yes, it was odd, and maybe even a little awkward, and probably crazy when you look at from the outside, but it was worth it. I know it was the Spirit that spoke to me and prompted me to send that message, and I'm glad I did. I don't know what was troubling my friend, I had no idea what to say when I picked them up, but I don't think it mattered. I think the message of love, hope, and care was there, and I think that's all that was important.
I'm glad I listened when the call came. I'm grateful I was able to hear the cry behind the simple, masked message of pain. I'm grateful to be that saving grace for someone else, when I have so often been the one to call upon those tender mercies.
Please, take the time to slow down.
Listen when someone is talking to you, and not just to the words, but to the message behind it all.
Listen to their pain and do whatever is in your power to relieve it.
Show love to those that you may easily overlook, simply because you "hardly know them."
Take the time to serve, even it that means just 15 minutes to let someone know that you are there and you care.
Don't be afraid to take a leap into the awkward and unknown because you will always have the question of "what if I had?"
Most importantly, be a friend. A true friend. Someone that people know they can rely on. You won't regret being "that friend" and they will never forget that you loved them.
