Friendship is a life-giving gift in which we don't run away. We do the opposite.

Finding a Network of Life-Giving Friendship

Posted on by Michele Morin

The layers of life, in all their overwhelming proportions, call for a large God. The unexpected diagnosis, the many ways in which we disappoint ourselves, and the messiness of the generations all seem to come home to roost during middle age as parents depart this world and adult children come into their own. Margie Nethercott elected to manage all these complications by carefully selecting a large rock, tying it to her ankle, paddling to the middle of a lake and letting the rock pull her to the bottom.

Her plan would have been flawless except for low rainfall and high temperatures which put the water level at about neck high on a medium height middle-aged woman, leaving her tethered and stranded in the middle of the lake. Can You See Anything Now?: A Novel by Katherine James faces head-on the emptiness, weariness, insecurity, and discord of small town life in Trinity, New York where the Nethercott family and a constellation of their friends seek appropriate ways to struggle.

We all need a web of supportive friendships, and in mid-life finding our tribe can be a real challenge. How are you managing it? Have you found it at church, through small groups? Are you discovering fellowship by proactively going in search of it? Is your home a gathering place? Today, I’m pointing you to one on-line source of encouragement and fellowship:  The Perennial Gen, and I’m sharing my review of Kate James’s excellent novel there today. Click on over, and be sure to share in the comments the fellowship-building strategies that are working for you.

Many thanks to Paraclete Press for providing a copy of this book.

Rejoicing in the Glory (so very big!),

I  am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. If you should decide to purchase Can You See Anything Now?: A Novel simply click on the title, and you’ll be taken directly to Amazon. If you decide to buy, I’ll make a small commission at no extra cost to you.

 

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Published by Michele Morin

Michele Morin is a Bible teacher, writer, reader, and gardener committed to the truth that women can become confident Christ-followers and students of God's Word. She has been married to an unreasonably patient husband for thirty-plus years, and together they have four sons, four daughters-in-love, and five adorable grandchildren. Michele loves hot tea and well-crafted sentences, poems that stop her in her tracks, and days at the ocean with the whole family. She laments biblical illiteracy and advocates for the prudent use of “little minutes.” She blogs at Living Our Days, and you can connect with her on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter.

16 thoughts on “Finding a Network of Life-Giving Friendship”

  1. You always do this to me! You get me to add to my book list! I’m intrigued! THE way I build community is by intentionally engaging with my church community. Because I’m a pastor’s wife, it sort of goes with the territory I guess. Still, I get a chance to see how vital it is to having community. Engaging. Even when I think I don’t want to. It always blesses me somehow and it is part of my family.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Lord, you hear Lauren’s heart and you know the basis of her struggle even better than she does. Lead her, in your perfect way, to the connections that you know would be best for her and a blessing to many.
      Thank you for her heart, Lord.

      Like

  3. I’ve always been a quiet, stay at home type person and add introvert, and I don’t make friends that easily. My sisters are my best friend/companions when needing to be out and about and of course my hubby has always been a best friend. Seems as I’ve headed into almost the mid 70’s that friends have gone, and making new ones are kind of elusive. The book sounds like a good one to check out, and may see if library has it. As always, enjoyed reading. 🙂 Have a great week ahead.

    Like

  4. Michele, your posts are always such perfect timing for me–just today on my own site I am looking at the surprising and different friendships that God brought to me in the small town neighborhood where He planted us 15 years ago. They were not what I expected to find, but yet God has used and blessed each one in His own ways of working. This book reminds me of the heartache we felt at times over Jayber and Orual during our reading together! Thank you for the heart-opening books and writing you share!

    Like

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