1 Corinthians 13:4-8
Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; 5 does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; 6 does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; 7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
8 Love never fails.
This month I thought I would just share some memories... you know, "back in the day" stuff.
I think I'll begin here--- The other day, Sandy was cleaning out her wallet and found an old letter from me that she had been saving (I think it was written on parchment... heh! heh!) Back then we didn't have text messaging... in fact we didn't even have cell phones. We had them kind with squiggly cords, (remember them, they usually hung on the wall, avocado green or harvest gold ) and if you were cool you had a cord that was about 20 feet long. One of our homes had an outdoor phone jack on the rear patio. So cool... just unplug the indoor phone and plug it in the outdoor jack where you were lounging. Don't laugh! That was happening!
Anyway, getting back to the letter; well... it was one of them "kissing-up" letters. It seems I did something stupid (back in the day, stupid was my middle name, like most young guys). So here I was writing a whole lot of mush, trying to make up, AGAIN. I'll spare you the mush. No, you're probably dying to know... right? Sorry, I ain't young and I ain't stupid no mo!
What I want to tell you is this... at the end of the letter I reminded her of our promise, "remember, you and me... forever?
When Sandy and I first met, I was a thousand miles from my home, with no family, and on my own. Sandy, on the other hand was close to home and family, but she was also on her own (having to leave home when she turned 18). So, as young lovers, we made a promise to each other that we would stick together through thick or thin... and it would be her and I against the world, FOREVER! That was 44 years ago.
Well, there was a whole lot of "thick", and a whole lot of "thin" through the years. But there was a whole lot more "you and me against the world together", and we got through it.
As odd as it may seem, Sandy and I have always been close together (literally), we did everything together, played together, laughed together, cried together, worked together, had our own family together, and as you may guess, we were both amazingly and wonderfully saved together. WOW! Now we had the FOREVER, and the together became a threesome (me, Sandy, and Jesus) instead of twosome.
Eventually the Lord put us into our own ministry. You'd never guess what we called it... "FOREVER Friends Ministry" No surprise, huh?
We started by getting invited to speak at home groups and churches. We would always start the meeting with a story.
Here's the story--
It was a beautiful summer's day. The sun was bright, the breeze off the ocean waves was warm & caressing. The sand was hot, very fine, and perfect for building a sand castle.
Two beautiful young children... best friends, a boy and a girl. Together they spent the entire morning building an elaborate sand castle. They worked hard... paying close attention to every detail; a beautiful castle with tall towers and windows, high walls, a large door, and even a moat all around.
They were nearly finished... when a huge wave rushed up the beach surrounding their castle, and as they watched in horror, it seemed to just melt before their eyes. The wave retreated and the castle vanished. All their hard work together was gone.
You're probably saying to yourself, what a sad story. Is that suppose to be a picture of two peoples' lives together? Yes. That's pretty much the picture, and probably would end most relationships.
Here's the rest of the story-- with love in their lives and eternity in their hearts--- The two best friends, with child-like trust... looked at each other... giggled... took hold of each others hand and went skipping down the beach together... looking for another perfect place to build their sandcastle.
Life isn't always perfect, but if you'll pursue Love... God has a perfect FOREVER for you!
Tell somebody today that you love them... but this time mean it... really mean it.
