Heavenly exchanges

CINDY TRANE CHRISTESON

“Tell God all that is in your heart, as one unloads one’s heart to a

dear friend. People who have no secrets from each other never want

subjects of conversation; they do not weigh their words, because

there is nothing to be kept back. Neither do they seek for something

to say; they talk out of the abundance of their hearts, just what

they think. Blessed are they who attain to such familiar, unreserved

intercourse with God.”

-- FRANCOIS DE LA MOTHE

FENELON

A friend of mine asked me, “Cindy, this may sound like silly

questions to you, but did you have friends when you were young, or

maybe you do now, and they were the kind of friends that you could

tell anything and everything to, and what you said about what you

thought or felt didn’t even have to make any sense?

“And did you ever experience the freedom of being loved and

accepted just for being who you were, and if something mattered to

you, it mattered to your friend, and if it mattered to her, it

mattered to you, no matter what it was? Does this make any sense to

you at all?”

“Those aren’t silly questions at all, and it does make sense to

me,” I answered my friend.

I told her that God has blessed me with those kinds of

friendships, and that my life has been deeply enriched by the love,

acceptance, understanding and depth of those relationships.

I then smiled at her and asked her the reason for her questions.

She smiled back.

“Well, I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how much God loves

me, and then I remembered something that one of my best friends from

childhood said to me once when we were in her backyard swinging on

her swing set,” she said. “We talked about whatever seemed important

at the time and then we each swung as high as we could, and I think

that we sang loudly too. When we stopped, I remember that she said

that she didn’t just love me, but she liked me too. It really meant a

lot to me.

“I thought of that recently, when I saw two children on a swing

set, and I felt like God was reminding me that he likes me, besides

loving me. Now I talk with him more about anything that matters to

me, even if it might not seem all that significant to mention to

someone else. I don’t just pray about things, I talk to him, like a

friend, and I feel closer to him than ever before.”

I told her that I think that God loves to hear from us about

anything and everything, and that he cares about what we care about

too. I thanked her for the great reminder that God is not only our

heavenly father, but that he is our best friend, too.

I was reminded of that conversation recently when I walked past a

swing set at a park. It was cool and cloudy, and nobody was out

playing, but I stood and watched the empty swings move gently with

the breeze.

I decided to swing for a while and thought about friendship with

God. I didn’t swing for long because I could see that it was about to

rain, but on my way home, I talked to God like he was my best friend.

It rained on me before I reached home, but it didn’t matter

because I was inwardly warmed by this simple thought: God not only

loves us; he likes us too.

And you can quote me on that.

* CINDY TRANE CHRISTESON is a Newport Beach resident who speaks

frequently to parenting groups. She may be reached via e-mail at

cindy@onthegrow.com or through the mail at 537 Newport Center Drive,

Box 505, Newport Beach, CA 92660.