Proverbs 27:17 says, “Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another.” Another version of this same verse puts it like this, “As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend.”
On Friday of last week, I got an email from my dear friend, our founder and editor, Ashley Young. We have started exchanging emails in our free time from our very busy lives, which is pretty sporadic since she is totally rocking a Seventeen internship in The Big Apple and I’m constantly on the road between four counties. I can tell you this, every time I get an email from Ashley, it is exactly what I need. By the time I get done reading, I feel like my eyes have flown open and I have been called from my sleepwalking state with a renewed energy to take on the world again.
My mind was circling with dreaming and ideas. I thought of blog ideas, I thought of the future, of Nashville, editing, writing, and excelling. This explosion of creativity is something I have always loved about my friendship with Ashley. I’ve loved how she brings out the absolute best in me, and when I have an idea that’s not so hot or under-developed, she has helped me to revamp it and make it awesome!
Not only does she help me to think and dream bigger, but she keeps me grounded. She helps me remember how I play into God’s plan for my life. All around, she is the truest, most authentic friend (and person) I have met since I came to West Virginia Wesleyan College three years ago. She has been with me through the high parts and the low times, and I have tried to do the same. I aspire to be just as good a friend as she has been to me.
You can call this gushing all you want, but I did that to say this: As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend. The mark of a positive, healthy, constructive relationship is that where both people are there for each other in good times and bad, inspire them to be more and do more than they ever thought they were capable of doing, and remind them that they are way more than useless, when they think they can’t do anything right. You support them and help them. You love them and respect them.
Do you have a friend like this? Share with us a picture of you and your dearest friend(s) on our Facebook and Twitter pages!