Friendship Remains

Friendship Remains

No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love is brought to full expression in us.

It was our tenth Hope Hike. A year earlier, we had decided that this would be our final endeavor. Afterward, we would give away the remaining funds in the foundation we had established in honor of my sister—Katie’s Club—and that would be it. At the time, it felt right, but the finality of it hit me hard as our week in Colorado progressed.

We stayed with friends in a big mountain house full of laughter, shared meals, and children running rampant. One evening, a friend asked how I felt about the climb. I paused, plunging dishes into scalding soapy water in an effort to distract myself from my turbulent feelings. I was unable to articulate how I felt. But late at night and in the early light of dawn, I thought a lot about my sister, and it left me searching for breath to pull into my lungs. In some ways it felt like my sister had died all over again, and I was left bereft, wondering, What now? What is her legacy, if not all this? How do I find purpose in the circumstances of her death if I can no longer see these tangible reminders of her life?

Yet even as I felt the weight of my friend’s question and the grief that lingered, I encountered the reminders of my sister’s life. I remembered that Jesus himself was the Word made flesh who dwelled among us (see John 1:14), and I considered how often God chooses to reveal his intangible attributes to us through the world around us and in the people we encounter. After all, it’s in friendship that we can see the love of God, reflected in the faces of those who love him.

At the week’s final event, I looked around at the friends who knew my sister or came simply because they loved us—friends willing to sacrifice vacation time and money. I was struck by the sense that the soul-deep friendships and community my husband and I had found were her true legacy. As we packed up our luggage and left the mountains, that certainty remained. And in purpose, in heart, in spirit—my sister remains too.

— Kristin

— Today’s Act of Friendship —

Think of a friend who has reflected the love of God to you. Send a note to say thank you.