Most of our country is in the middle of winter.  Cold weather did not skip my part either.  We did miss snow or ice but it was still pretty frigid for us today.  Trees had ice on them from the rain.  Winds made it less than fun to wander around outside.  Northern states get the snow but have equipment to deal with it.  You simply pile it up on the side while awaiting the arrival of warmer temperatures.  Texas tends to just be cold, wet and miserable.  Most of you know this and can imagine it will lead to a point.

I spent an hour today outside in the weather.  Most everything on me froze.  Our local Christian church minister was burying his wife today.  She passed away over the weekend.  One of my ideas was to be supportive by attending the graveside service.  The one problem is that her memorial service was in another town some distance away.  No one knew when the funeral party would arrive.  My decision was to wander down to the cemetery about 2:00 to wait.  They didn't make it to the cemetery until about 2:30 or later.  Then it was time to stand some more for the service.   I wanted to be supportive.  I think my actions were extra supportive with the elements.  All that was on my mind at the end was getting back into a hot shower to warm up.  Don't get me wrong.  Being there was important to me in this man's loss.  But regaining use of my toes and fingers soon became equally significant.

Friends matter more to me now than at any age of my journey.  Going through my last illness opened my eyes to how much they matter.  Some people never get this and you can count me as one who almost missed it.  That is not to say I never had friends.  Holding onto friends was another matter.  Being a minister is a career that takes you places as a norm.  You meet people in one congregation before moving to the next.  This often makes it tough to hang on to old friends while learning new ones in the next place.  I can admit my personality doesn't usually help this process.  Being a bit introverted does stifle opening up to others.  It makes it easier to freeze off body parts than really let people know you.

Being vulnerable is a huge part of friendship.  My view is that those you cannot trust may not actually be in the friend category.  Making small talk about common interests is fine but it may not build relationships.  Jesus would tell His followers they were friends as He was vulnerable about God's purpose along with His life.  Being able to say with humility that you need help is vital to growing a friendship.  Taking a risk with another person builds a firm friendship.  Ask Bogart about that in "Casablanca."  Moving past talking about interests to sharing what may lie deep within makes a relationship matter.  It's about being real with another person.  These work with your relationship with God and they can work with others around you.  I never said any of this is easy but it is always essential. 

Bro. Trey