Spiritual Aunties

Spiritual Aunties

We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other.

It’s an unlikely friendship, seeing as how she is three, and I’m parenting children three times her age. She periodically spends an hour or two with me in the middle of the day when her mom has a meeting, and we’ve struck up a friendship based upon our mutual love of gardening and my dogs.

RaeRae is short for Areala, and she is a delightful young lady who has decided that I am a delightful oldish lady. I’ve started keeping a stash of her favorite snacks and making a few simple plans when I know she’ll be around, and she arrives with a hug and laughter and the adorably mangled English of a toddler.

RaeRae also brings with her the gift of living in the moment. With my to-do list and work set aside, I get to delight in experiencing the world through her eyes. In the spring we’ve planted seeds, examining the remarkable differences between the various types while I stealthily help her practice her counting. We go for walks to see the “castle house” down around the corner, pausing to admire the turrets and ponder if they allow birthday parties to be held there. We “train” my dogs, meaning RaeRae hands them treats for just being dogs and loving her. And we talk about all the things a three-year-old girl wants to talk about and a few of the things a fortysomething woman wants to talk about.

Friendship transcends age, and I am delighted by my young friend’s companionship and joyful enthusiasm, even as I come alongside her mom by temporarily caring for RaeRae and being a loving adult in her daughter’s life. I’m a spiritual auntie, and both RaeRae and I are blessed by our relationship.

We were never meant to go it alone. We are called the body of Christ because we are knit together in a spiritual relationship, called to encourage one another in what it means to follow Jesus. We all need spiritual aunties—women who are a few years older, a bit more seasoned, who show us how to walk in Jesus’ footsteps.

— Julie

— Today’s Act of Friendship —

Look around to see who Jesus may be calling you to be a spiritual auntie to, whether a young bride, a new mom, or a neighbor child.