In the Highs and Lows

At the end of every semester of Bible study, the women of Highpoint gather to enjoy brunch and share corporately what God has been doing in each of our small groups. It is often a time of encouragement, a reminder of great Biblical truths we have learned over the study, and a chance to celebrate crossing the finish line. There are so many distractions that can pull us away from the things that truly matter that completing the semester is worthy to celebrate. Score one point for us and zero for the enemy, this semester.Yesterday was the final meeting for our fall semester.  After eating, we transitioned to a short video before I was going to lead us in a time to share the truths God had revealed to us this semester. My type A personality struggles with the chatter that seems to continue in a room full of women, so I had encouraged the women to please respect those around them by being quiet or taking any critical conversations out to the hall. A few minutes later, four women got up and left.  Moments passed and then we heard some loud noises in the hall. The video concluded and as I begin to address the ladies, the four women quietly returned. A few women shared before one of the four spoke. It turns out the women had exited so that three could go wait outside the restroom while the fourth took a pregnancy test. The eruption in the hall we had heard… was the positive!We have “only at Highpoint” moments frequently… I think this will make the list. As the entire group joined in the celebration, I jokingly asked if anyone else was pregnant. Two more announcements were made. Apparently, we are a fertile bunch.As I reflected on the morning, I was reminded how much we need each other at the highs and lows of life. I am so grateful that relationships had formed among women that had grown deeply enough that one would invite three others into such a personal moment. We all need friends around us to celebrate. We need people to feel deeply with us. In that very same room, I am certain there are other women whose hearts dropped each time an announcement was made as they thought, “Why not me, Lord?” Again, I am so grateful that God created us to be in community. In the highs and in the lows, we need each other. As another shared how she was reminded that she should persevere in prayer. Through tears, she confessed she was so tired of praying. We need others to pray for us when we are weary.Wherever you live, whatever your stage of life, I encourage you to prioritize building relationships with other women who love the Lord around His word.  Plan now to jump into a Bible study at the start of the New Year. Yes, you can do a Bible study by yourself, but by allowing friendships to be centered on God’s word gives you the opportunity to encourage and sharpen each other in a way that rarely happens otherwise. I would love to hear...How have you been encouraged by friends during your highs and lows?