one of the best experiences of my life...

Let me just say that God has blessed me with some deep friendships with men of very high integrity recently. Last weekend I had been a little disappointed by the behavior of a couple of my friends. I had just gotten done telling one of them how much I appreciated his authenticity and transparency in his life, that I loved how he relates to people and brings them out. He told me that it was the best compliment he'd ever received. And the next day came the fall. I won't go into details but only that it made me question my own character that I would hang out with people who would do such things. I felt like a fool for paying him that compliment; I felt as though I had been snowed.

And then last night the two of them showed up here after driving 3 hours to apologize to all the parties involved. They were very humble and asked for forgiveness. They were incredibly remorseful over how they behaved. (Let me just say that what they did wasn't terrible. They didn't hurt anyone but themselves really and only temporarily hurt a few of us here.) They had talked a lot together over the course of the week and prayed with each other about things that happened. They both decided they needed to come down and apologize to everyone. One of them, the main one involved, did most of the talking and part of what he said was how he wasn't where he should be spiritually.

I was able to say without reservation that I forgave them and that I love them both so very much. I told them I respected them immensely for facing up to it. And then I was hit with this thought and shared it with the group: We are all capable of doing what they did. We all sin. And when we do, if we handle it with as much humility as they did then we'd all be doing very well. And I looked at the one who said he wasn't where he should be and told him not to believe that lie and said that we are all exactlywhere we need to be. God us has all here, where we are in our spiritual journeys, for a very specific reason. And I said that I felt it was all to teach us a lesson about integrity and living in intentional relationships with each other. Then I looked at the other, to whom I had paid the compliment last weekend, and told him how over the week I wanted to take it back, but now I mean it even more than before.

It turned into an awesome confession time among some of my best friends. It was incredible. The presence of the Holy Spirit was palpable. We weren't just confessing our sins against each other but our sins in secret, the things we do when no one is looking. I had never experienced anything like it. This group of friends now means more to me than I could ever imagine; this is the very picture of intentional friendships and it's beautiful, to say the absolute least. I hope that everyone can experience this kind of love in their own relationships.

Now, a prayer request... The little brother of one of the two guys was flown by 'copter from his home village of Koyuk, AK to Anchorage with severe burns on his face and neck. He's listed in very serious condition. It is due to neglect. I have seen pictures and it's very traumatic. He will definitely have permanent scarring, even after reconstructive surgeries. The boy is named Willie and he is only six years old. Please pray for him.