my minnesota besty

i should be packing for minnesota. i fly out tomorrow to spend the weekend celebrating the wedding of my dear friend ashley.

we met in 2008. i can't believe it was that long ago that we were both in maui doing the ywam school of biblical foundations & missions - one of the best seasons of my life, wowza! ash and i clicked and were pretty much inseparable during our time there. don't let "inseparable" fool you, i don't mean we were always together, cause part of what made our friendship great is that we're both independent girls with an introverted streak.

neither one of us had ever dated or kissed anyone at that point in life - a rarity for two twenty-year-olds. it surprised everyone else, but when we talked about it together we totally bonded over this fact, quickly realizing that we had each just made a new friend who 1) loved the Lord above all else and 2) had no desire to conform to society or live a "normal" life and 3) wanted the best, in our future husbands and in everything else in life.

when we talk we get fired up and gain momentum from each other. ashley's friendship has truly been a gift from God because even once we left maui and stayed in touch via phone, our conversations continued to spur me on in my relationship with God. to have a friend who takes her walk with the Lord seriously and whose passion only fuels me to go deeper and deeper is INCREDIBLE. if only we lived in the same neighborhood!

i love this girl's passion, her hearty amens and hallelujahs. i love the way we talk about the things of the Lord. i love it when she prays for me. i love her sass and her spunk and how much she has taught me about myself. those are the best of friends - the ones who teach you things you didn't even realize about yourself. i just find something special in that. ashley builds me up. i wish i had more friends like her!

one of the comical things she showed me is that i am intimidating. when she told me that she was intimidated by me at first but really really wanted to be friends with me, i couldn't believe it! how could i possible be intimidating to one of the most beautiful and confident girls i've ever met?! (i still don't get it.)

we had so many crazy awesome adventures together in maui (and in pa, nj & nyc when she came to visit me!) that i am having trouble narrowing down which stories to tell at her wedding. i am incredibly honored to be ashley's maid-of-honor. i was tearing up today thinking about her wedding and expect plenty more tears this weekend.

she waited and prayed for her man, believing God had the best and He did! i am so proud of her, so i can only imagine how her parents must feel. that's one reasons weddings give me such happy sappy tears - thinking about the families who watched these two people grow up and mature and prayed for their spouses and now they get to watch their lives come together forever. ohmygoodness, God you are so so good!