Spelling...or perhaps rather 'compelling'...?

This won't be one of those lengthy notes like I've written in recent months :) All that I basically wanna say today revolves around the various ways to spell "Love".

One way I spell it is J-e-s-u-s. The most obvious for me, and also the most amazingly beautiful and awe-inspiring of them all :)

Another would be F-a-m-i-l-y. Alot of you might agree. Mine is small-ish, so time spent together has become a rare but priceless commodity, especially since we're slowly scattering across the globe.

One of my favourite ways to spell 'Love' though, is F-r-i-e-n-d...in every way, shape, form or regard. Maybe it's because I don't have siblings, I dunno. And perhaps if I did, I would be looking at this v-e-r-y differently... ;P

The Oxford refers in it's Thesaurus to a 'Friend' being a "comrade, confidant, familiar, intimate, soul mate, playmate, ally, pal, chum, buddy, amigo, compadre, homeboy". And yes, of course family members can also be friends :) For the purpose of this note though, I'm referring to those people in my life to whom I'm not genetically related to. I'm referring to those who've made an impact on my life in one way or another, knowingly or unknowingly. You might never fully know how much I appreciate you. And I might not even have been looking for a friend per se, but there you were - in school, at church, at work, in a ministry, in a lifegroup... And I trust that you will know who you are.

Yes, I'm well aware that this might sound soppy to some :) But I'm past the stage of fretting about stuff like that. Life's too short to not let those who matter to us, know just how much they mean to us. Some of you might not know how much you've come to mean to me, regardless if you've been there for 20 days or over 20 years... Only God knows where our friendship will take us, and how long you're borrowed to me in the literal sense. But through our friendship, He has shown me that one doesn't have to be removed from someone for an extended period of time to miss them - sometimes a few hours can seem like a lifetime. He has also shown me that a heart can love in countless different ways and to capacities unbeknown to us.

So in closing I just want you to know that I love you, I appreciate you and value you. And more than all of that, I thank God for you, and all the beauty and colour and warmth that He brings to my life through you.

Have a wonderful festive season, and I look forward to see all of you again in 2009.

Lotsa Hugz & Blessings
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