Think for a moment about your women’s networks. I look back
over my life and can trace my history by looking at my girlfriends.
There were my neighborhood and school girl friends: Becky
and Theresa.
There were my church friends: Janet and Pam and Liz and Debbie.
Then there were my college friends: five of us - Susan,
Brenda, Sandy, Sharon and me. We sang
together throughout college and after.
Then there were my teacher friends: Dee, Sherrie, Phyllis,
and Francis
There were my single friends like Paulina.
Now there are my Christ Church friends and girl, do I have
friends - a whole sisterhood of friends, women who will pray for me and laugh
with me and generally do life with me.
I just can’t imagine life without friends.
In a study published in the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, researchers asked
participants to stand at the base of a steep hill and estimate how tough it
would be to climb. Those standing with a friend judged the climb to be less
steep compared with those who were alone.
Another study on the importance of showed the survival rate of women
with breast cancer. It found that those women who had a strong, supportive
circle of friends outlived by many years their counterparts who lived in social
isolation.
A study from Harvard Medical School showed that
the more friends women have, the less likely they are to develop physical
impairments as they age, and the more likely they are to lead a contented life.
The study also showed that not having friends is as hurtful to your health as
being overweight or smoking cigarettes. The researchers examined how well the
women functioned after the death of a spouse and found that even in the face of
this major life loss, women with close friends with whom they can share their
burdens fare better than women who lack close friendships.
Do you ever get so involved in your busy life that you don’t
take time to nurture your friendships? Look at these reasons to do so:
1 1. Friendships can reduce stress.
A UCLA study suggests that women respond to stress with
a flow of brain chemicals that cause us to make and maintain friendships with
other women. The hormone oxytocin is released as part of stress response, and
in women, oxytocin triggers an immediate desire to seek and maintain
relationships in response to stress. Imagine that! Stress encourages us to bond
with other women!
22. Friendships provide accountability.
Having a community of women that you share your goals and
dreams with keeps you accountable to yourself. We all need affirmation to keep
us going!
33. Friends
lengthen your life.
Research supports
the finding that having a network of social contacts helps people have longer,
healthier, happier lives. When you live your full of a sense of purpose, you
wake up every day with something to look forward to.
44.
Friends
support your goals.
Good friends encourage you to keep keeping on. They help you
meet your goals instead of hindering your efforts.
Having a sisterhood is good for our mind, body, soul, and
spirit. So many reality shows are devoted to unhealthy female relationships.
They depict women arguing, belittling each other, gossiping, and tearing each
other down. A true sisterhood is nothing like this. I encourage you to nurture
your friendships, lift up other women, and focus on the good in others.
Let’s hear it for the sisterhood!
We all need courage at different
times in our life. I remember try to summon the courage to jump off the high
dive at the Harrison Bay State Park swimming pool when I was a kid. I walked
toward the end of the board only to turn around and walk back. I did this over
and over until peer pressure got the best of me. It takes courage to jump off
the high dive at the community swimming pool. Or to do something that might be
a little risky such as sky diving or riding a bike for the first time. Or to
make a public presentation about something you believe in. Or to stand up for a
person who is being picked on. Or to ask for a promotion or a raise at work. Or
to battle an illness. Or to share your faith story to someone. When we act with
courage, we find the mental or moral strength to face a difficulty, danger, or
pain. We act with bravery, confidence, or perseverance. Our passage today
reminds us the Lord is our light and our stronghold when we are afraid. As our
light, he guides our path. As our stronghold, he protects us. We see that David
was obviously going through a trial, but he was confident that while he was
living, God would see him through. David encourages us to wait for the Lord’s
guidance, be strong in the wait, and then be courageous.
