His hand at work in my life until the situation was over and I
was able to look back. That’s when I could see His fingerprints
all over the situation and how He was faithful in orchestrating
the events and working on my behalf.
It’s no different in this story. As my family was going through
this incredibly hard time, Jesus had placed us right where we
were supposed to live, across the street from Stephanie,
Whitney, and their family. Through the pain, God supplied
friends who would help us, walk beside us, and travel with us
through life. Whitney’s and Stephanie’s mom had walked a
similar path just a few years prior to my family moving across
the street. Their mom comforted my mom as they let us use
their washing machine to wash our clothes. Though it was only
a year, that’s all that was needed. God used that hard year to
knit our hearts together and begin a friendship that would span
twenty-plus years.
Stephanie’s and Whitney’s mom loved on my mom, offered
advice, listened, and best of all just did life with her. It’s so nice
to have a friend who chooses to walk beside you through your
pain. It's even nicer to have a friend who chooses to walk
beside you because she understands the path on which you
are walking. She knows the fears, the pain, and the need to
have someone with you to comfort you and remind you that
you’re not alone.
That year God began something beautiful in all our lives. He
brought beauty out of our ashes (Isaiah 61:3). He birthed love
and friendship out of pain (Psalm 34:18).
Though Stephanie and I were only neighbors for a year, she
and I remain friends to this day. Instead of next-door