The people I am close to form the safety net for when I inevitably fall. We all fall eventually, some of us again and again. This week I am reminded of how intentional connections protect us when we have fallen or are burdened.

A nearby farm recently acquired a flock of sheep. Several times per day, I pass by their pasture. I enjoy the opportunity to watch them be sheep. From what I can tell, personal space does not exist for sheep. They move as a unit. They all sit, all stand, all turn to listen to the human talking to them while taking their picture, and all move around the pasture as if connected.

The connection I witness daily from the sheep makes me consider my connections with people. I do best when I am well connected to others. Just like a sheep huddles close to its flock for protection, we need to do the same with other humans. I think, though, the closeness required doesn’t necessarily need to be physical.

Some people have extremely close family bonds that fill their need for connection. I fall in the category of people that do not. Either way, as adults, we must find our flock. I used to think those people needed to live in the same area as me.

Adult friendships can be tricky, right? I moved to a different state twice. I left friends behind with every move. Sometimes, moving becomes necessary. I just really hate having to re-tool my people group when either I move or one of my friends does.

“I can’t wait for you to meet her!” Cathy said, “She’s one of us!” Truer words have never been spoken. In no time at all, Maretta and I bonded. Now, seven-ish years later, her family moves to Florida at the end of the week. I feel lots of things, most of them sad.

The exodus of this close friend from the area makes 3 in the last 7 years; first Lisa, then Jennie, and this week my sweet Maretta. I now consider myself a friendship black widow. Anyone local who wishes to befriend me should first ask herself if she cares to move away. If I consider befriending someone, I need to ask if her husband is happy here in the Shenandoah Valley. All three moves happened due to spousal unrest of varying kinds.

Amid the giant pity party I threw myself, I realized something important. The first two friends who moved away still serve happily as essential members of my flock. A long telephone conversation with Lisa while writing this post validated that notion. We relate to each other exactly as we did when her house was 20 minutes from mine. She moved to the other side of the nation but when I am struggling, she is a text, a phone call, a Facetime, or a Marco Polo away. She moved but never stopped loving me and being there for me. The same is true of Jennie and will be of Maretta too.

The Bible talks a lot about how we as believers function best in community with others. Loving, serving, and encouraging each other connects us to our community . We need each other for many things. I most often seek my flock when I am hurting.

Carry one another’s burdens; in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.

 Galatians 6:2 (CSB)

Sheep provide an excellent visual reminder of connectedness. Though our connections look less like sheep, as in, a blob of wool, eyeballs, and hooves moving synchronously, they function much the same. The protection sheep achieve by huddling close, we achieve by fulfilling the law of Christ in our relationships. Unlike sheep, we can accomplish this with people next door, in another state, or on another continent. To carry one another’s burdens, instead of moving instinctually, we move intentionally.

Can you identify your flock? Are they your family, your neighbors, your church body, or random friends? Maybe, like me, your flock contains a mixed bag of relationships spread all over the globe. Whoever and wherever they are, let’s be intentional.

In the weeks to come, when I am missing my friend, I plan to look at the sheep and be reminded that though the distance between us increased, our connection remains.