I’ve been struggling with the burdens of friendship recently. I believe passionately in community. If you follow me on any platform, you might’ve noticed. I started this blog, a Mothers Ministry, and a neighborhood Bible Study to help encourage women and build community for myself and others. I feel strongly that we need a village, a solid reliable community, to do this earthly life.

Yet I am learning the hard way when you’re far from family in a new area, sometimes you have to build your own village . I want to be obedient to the call to build community for women, particularly mothers, and be an encourager as the Holy Spirit leads me.

My husband and I have been involved at our church for 10 years, and a year ago we began hosting a weekly small group. It’s been good for us because we’ve been able to get to know new people and make new friends. We’ve been helped by our group and we’ve been able to help others.

But, still, people are messy. And when you deal with messy people, life can get messy, too. Hence, burdens!

Feelings are a funny thing. On the one hand, our feelings are valid and it’s okay to acknowledge them, feel them, and give them to God. 1 Peter 5:7 says “Cast all your cares on Him, because He cares for you.”

On the other hand, feelings don’t define us and shouldn’t be where we spend our time. I get stuck here. A lot. I am good at labeling my feelings and acknowledging them, I think, but I tend to hang out there and struggle to move on from them to do something productive. I’d rather find a way to “not feel them,” or I seek out justification for them rather than trying to identify the heart of the issue.

Does this ever happen to you? Can you relate?