friends

There are 2 posts tagged friends (this is page 1 of 1).

Thank God for Friends

I’ve been on an emotional roller coaster ride for the past weeks and if not for my friends, I may have gone crazy.

 

9 You are better off to a friend than to be all alone, because then you will get more enjoyment out of what you earn. 10 If you fall, your friend can help you up. But if you fall without having a friend nearby, you are really in trouble.

Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 (CEV)

I’ve had a broken relationship with my sister and lately, I’m feeling at a loss. I’ve also been so busy with my tasks that I think, if I have gone through all this alone, I know I can’t take it. God just knows and provides what you need, exactly when you need it.

 

So here, I wanna introduce you to my friend Venice. She has helped me through my most emotional times this year.

Our Story 

I’m attending Victory Makati since 2013 and every week, we have what we call a Victory Group (VG) . It is a support group where we talk about God, our careers, relationships and dreams, and all relate it to how God wanted us to live a life pleasing to Him.  When our group leader Yasmin died in an accident in 2015, I took over and led these women here in our journey through life.

Our Victory group, with Yasmin in orange as our leader

The women I started leading in 2015

 

Eventually, life brings us to our destined purpose and we separated ways. Some of them took another job, and some went abroad to pursue a graduate degree and career. I thankful enough I get to influence their lives at one point in time.

 

As it is, Venice and I were the only ones who remained in the group. Since we also wanted to share the love of God to other people, we started our own Victory group in her dormitory. After a year, I have gained new friends and together, we are walking in this journey with God’s guidance.

 

Why am I sharing about them? Well, I just wanted to honor these people and make them feel special in this online space that I have.

 

For today, I just finished talking to Venice and I’m thankful enough God gave me friends who can rebuke me if needed, help me and encourage me when I’m down, and also, celebrate with me if I’m happy. I’m thankful enough to God because the relationships I have with these people are not disposable. I’m just thankful because I realize, if your friendship puts God at the center, you know that friendship will last. Lastly, I’m thankful enough because I know, I’m not alone in this journey called life.

 
PS: I’m still hoping my relationship with my sister be fixed in due time, and that my friends will also get to know my future partner so they can hang out together. For now, I’m thankful because even if not everything is sailing smoothly, I have friends I can count on most especially when I needed them.

 

How about you? Are you feeling down, discouraged or you just needed someone to talk to? I hope God can also give you a friend you can cherish for a long time. But if you haven’t met these kind of friends yet, you can talk to me and I can introduce you to the greatest friend of all.

 
Really, I’m here to help and talk to you if you need one. Just tag me in Twitter or Instagram @itswyza and I’ll do my best to help you out. 🙂

 

Through Thick and Thin

It is good to have friends who can share our accomplishments and cheer for us, cry with us if we are ever so down, and fight for us when other people do not believe in us.

 
In the previous months, my mind and my heart was in conflict whether or not to look for career growth elsewhere. I’m vying for career advancement, but at the time, I do not see any light at the end of the tunnel. I’ve blogged my thoughts in this post, and you see, I came to the conclusion that it’s better to cultivate the grass on my own lawn, be happy about it and just be excellent with what was given to me. So, I stayed. It was not easy, though.

 
I was trying my best to become the person I’ve dreamed about myself five years ago, but the reality was that I was not close to it. Even far from it. I had envisioned myself to be working in a production industry for development-oriented programs, but God had other plans. He chose that I flourish in the eLearning industry.

 
My career in the eLearning industry is not without bumps and obstacles. I started as a learning integration specialist — a school consultant on how to use technology inside the classroom, then worked as a specialist — learning everything I need to know about the industry. I’ve had several managers, met new people, dealt with a hundred issues, and was left behind by friends who chose their paths to their own career growth. It was not easy staying and being left behind, but I know, everything was kept in order so I will understand God’s purpose someday. Recently, I just realized how privileged I am to have a career that I really like, earn money for it, and help other people through it. I may have been anxious some time this year as to why things happen, but true enough, the kind words of friends helped me see the bigger picture.

 

An anxious heart weighs a man down, but kind words cheer him up.

Proverbs 12:25

 

In the previous years, I had been insecure and a bit immature, and I wanted to rush things for my career growth. Back then, I would tell my friends my aspirations and they will tell me upfront if something is amiss and I need to endure. They would tell me to my face if I had been too proud of myself, yet celebrate with me if I would receive good news. When I was struggling in my career, my friends were there. If I had done wrong, they rebuke me gently so I will do the right thing next time.

 
You know, it is rare that we find people who would be there for us through thick and thin, but if we do find them, we hold on to them and never let go. I am just so thankful for friends who say the right words when things don’t go right, and for friends who are still by my side after all these years. If you also happen to have those kind of people in your life, don’t let go. Instead, cultivate that friendship to last a lifetime.

 

I realized that I have lived a good life with these friends around. So, I just wanted to honor these people who showed me love over the years: