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Trek 2008 - Sworn Friendship
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Trek 2008 – A Sworn Friendship
By Cheryle M. Touchton
The Pocket Full of Quarters Lady
Jonathan said to David, "Go in peace, for we have sworn friendship with each other in the name of the LORD, saying, 'The LORD is witness between you and me, and between your descendants and my descendants forever.'" Then David left, and Jonathan went back to the town. 1 Sam 20:42 NIV
I don’t like the feeling of being lost, which is really inconvenient, since I have almost no natural sense of direction - spiritually, emotionally, or physically. Physically speaking, if you’ve ridden with me, you know that I usually have no clue which direction to turn my car in when I pull out of a parking lot. Spiritually, on my own, I ended up bedridden, grossly obese, and useless to God and others. Emotionally - alone I whirled out of balance so quickly that others around me got dizzy. Having said that, because of the power and word of God, Godly friends, and my handy dandy GPS, I spend most of my life “found” spiritually, emotionally, and physically.
Much of staying “found” revolves around having Godly “sworn” friends who love, encourage, pray, rebuke, and push me. Today was a difficult day. I was discouraged with the condition of the world, church, and the people around me. It all seemed too much to bear. I was tired and overwhelmed by the tasks before me.
Throughout the day, friends helped. I had an article for a magazine contest due tomorrow and I hadn’t started it. My friend Gail Golden called and said, “Did you send it in?”
“No,” I said. “I don’t know what story to use. My writing voice is different than that magazine so there is really no point.”
Gail got on my website, found a story, made some editing changes, and e-mailed her suggestions to me.
My friend Barbara Gobbs called this morning to ask how I was and to tell me I was loved and prayed for. I told her that for two weeks in a row, I’d been in large popular fast growing churches and had heard profanity used from the pulpit and the special music.
“I don’t know what is happening in our churches. If my children had used those words that way, I would have washed out their mouths with soap. There were children sitting there. How can we teach children Godly ways of speaking if they hear that from the pulpit? I wanted to write a story about it for the website but it would just sound like I’m ranting.”
“When you’re ready, you’ll write about it,” she encouraged. “It will be wonderful.”
I called my friend Beverly Murray to ask for information about story. When we ended the conversation she said, “I’m enjoying your website. I pray for you every day. I love you.”
My friend (and sweet husband) Bob Touchton called. I told him how I was feeling. “I’m tired, discouraged, and lonely.”
“What can I do? How can help?” he asked.
“My-best-friend-Nancy” (her name is Nancy Edwards but I’ve been slurring the four words “my-best-friend-Nancy” together for 40 years) called and I whined, “I’m tired. I want to write about what I see happening in churches but it will just sound like ranting. Gail wants me to send a story for this magazine contest but I don’t feel like it.”
“Cheryle!” Nancy said firmly. “You don’t rant. Your story won’t sound like ranting. You also need to send the story in to that magazine. If you win the contest, it will be very good for you. If Gail has already picked the story and edited it, take what she did and send it in.”
Today, I had prayer, expressions of love, offers of help, and orders from my friends. I spent a few minutes in prayer and decided to follow directions. I took the story Gail picked, edited her edits, and had it e-mailed off in just a little over an hour. I felt “found” again. I thanked God for the Godly anchors in my life who keep me “found.” All of a sudden, I had enough energy left to write this story.
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Cheryle M. Touchton is the Director of Pocket Full of Change Ministries. For more information or to schedule a speaker for an event, go to www.pocketfullofchange.org or call Gail Golden at 904 316-5462.
This ministry exists because people like you are called to help fund the work of the kingdom. To help keep the Pocket Full of Quarters Lady on the road as a traveling missionary, send your tax deductible contribution to Pocket Full of Change Ministries, POB 51205, Jacksonville Beach, Florida 32240.
© Pocket Full of Change Ministries
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