Wholesome And Sweet

Wholesome and Sweet

The LORD has told you what is good, and this is what he requires of you: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.

“Julie, I was trying to be catty. I forgot that you are my wholesome and sweet friend.” Anita’s laughing response to my polite attempt to redirect a casual but slightly derogatory remark made me pause for a moment.

Wholesome? Sweet? Those words have been used to describe me on more than one occasion, usually with a slight sneer because the speaker thinks I’m some sort of Pollyanna. I cultivate a habit of calling out the good in people and in situations (including when they are not in the room), and some people confuse my extension of grace with being naive—an extremely uncool trait in a world that loves snark.

Although Anita spoke with love instead of with a sneer, I inwardly rebelled over those sugary words that have oftentimes been used to insult me. Jesus knows me, and he could tell you all the times that my response was neither wholesome nor sweet. But I stilled my tongue as a thought washed over me: Your friendship looks different enough from her other friendships that she has set you apart.

And that is my prayer. I pray that I would reflect Jesus—despite my many imperfections—to the world around me. I long to be the kind of Jesus follower whose life makes others pause, wondering what it is that I have, what it is about my life that causes me to respond with loving grace instead of snark and mild derision. I want people to have met Jesus in me long before I speak the words of invitation. In order to do that, I need to know what Jesus asks of me. We are called to walk with God in humility, extending grace, standing against injustice, and doing what is right.

If that means I am labeled (and sometimes dismissed) as wholesome and sweet, so be it.

— Julie

— Today’s Act of Friendship —

Take time to consider how friendship with you looks different from friendships with people who do not yet know God. If there’s something about your behavior that needs to shift, ask God to help you make that change.