Hello, God. It's me, Mara.

You know, Lord, friend, Ce De, asked if she and her neighbor could pop on over, so she could "spill her guts" - like what? So, here they came. They settled in for some tea and cookies and off she went.

"You know, long ago, Ally was my best friend - she's since died and gone to heaven, but I can't help but now and then, think about her - how great she was. Oh, maybe I'd best start out in the beginning. A casual acquaintance invited a group of gals over, including me. Well, surprise. That day Ally needed a babysitter, she picked me. Baby Ginger, newly adopted, was pretty small and cute as could be. Once we were in the house, all the gals had their eyes on me and the baby - saying among themselves, 'Did we know Ce De was pregnant?' They looked at me, asking - I just said, 'Nope, Ginger is an adopted babe ... and I'm just babysitting.'

"Well, that brought smiles - which brings me back to Ally. She was a great friend; seemed to know answers to many questions, especially when it came to cooking. I sure do miss her, even though I have lots of recipe books. She was like the disciple, Paul, in the Bible, helping many folks - no matter what they needed. Not sure which verse, but as I watched a neighbor, I rushed over to help her unload groceries, she was limping. I thought about trying to do good things to help others, I remember from that Bible verse. Anyway, Susie smiled, hugged me, thanked me, said she really felt blessed.

"I'd sure like to be more like disciple Paul. Thanks for listening. Sharing sometimes is a blessing."

Be blessed, Ce De, with today's devotional Bible verse: Hebrews 13:16 (NIV): "And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased."

Thank You, Lord, for this example.

Love, Mara