Laugh with Ash: For Tiffany.

As I sat in church this week, I listened to our Pastor talk about loving one another.

In fact, Jesus commanded that we love one another.

"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another."

John 13:34

Meet Tiffany.

My best friend.

The only person who has ever loved me as Jesus did.
Who has never judged me in all my mistakes.

We met in Kindergarten. And on her first day of school, we had a tornado drill.

She cried & I turned around and said "Don't worry, it's just a drill!"

And we've been friends ever since.

But I haven't always been a good friend. In fact, there were times when I was a pretty awful and absent friend. And through it all, she's been there. waiting for me to get my act together. Shaking her head, telling me I'm wrong, and being stupid. And loving me anyway. And showing me that God loves me.

See, I never knew God. Until I got to high school, and even then I didn't really know him.

I didn't know I needed him or wanted him, or that he could make my life so much better.

So I used other things to fill the voids. In high school it was all about fitting in.

Looking cool. Keeping up.

Alcohol. Sex. Drugs. Boys. Mischief.

I remember sitting in an assembly once and I turned to a friend on one side of me and said, "watch this".. then every time Tiffany would start to talk I made a loud noise or said shut-up or be quiet and pretended to be really mad at her. She got upset and we laughed about it.

I used to say some pretty awful things, because I thought I was being honest and that's the best policy right? No... you're opinion is never honesty or truth, it's your opinion and more often than not, it needs to be kept to yourself. Especially if you're a teenage girl in high school.

I can't believe I'm owning up to these because it makes me so sick to think about.

I was really a mean girl.

And it's funny because I'm not sure many people would remember that about me except my close friends... because they're the ones I hurt the most.

Have you been there?

I'd like to say I wish I hadn't but now I know how much of me has grown from there. But, I'm not at all proud and sometimes it makes me sick to my stomach.

I was an awful person. An awful friend.

To many good people, and good friends.

But mostly to Tiffany.

Because it was easy.

Because she loved me like Jesus loved me. Because no matter what I did or said, she was still a good friend to me. She never walked away, she never left me out to dry. She gave me a million and one second chances to be a better friend.