Wish you could have a heart-to-heart talk with God?

Ruthe does. All the time, where ever she goes, she's having a running conversation with the one she calls Lord, or my Best Friend. You've got to meet Ruthe! AND her Secret Roses.

The Kind of Friends I Attract

Dear Readers/Friends,
On the surface, I think there are two kinds of you, and with some over-lapping. As I ponder on this I see coming out of the blurring, a general profile - and yet-- yes, with different individual faces. No matter how anyone type-casts us, there are always special details that make us each unique, right? As a rule, I tend to look for the unique details, but just now I'm doing this exercise, and looking for the most common traits in the kinds of friends I attract.

Amazing. A lot of you look and behave like me! At least in traits that I tend to notice.

Chances are quite high that you are also from a dysfunctional family. That just means it wasn't perfect. It may have broken up before you grew up, or there was death and sickness and all kinds of factors, which you now discover as an adult, have messed with how you relate to others.

Your parents may not have fulfilled their roles as well as they should have. I wouldn't be surprised if you've come to a place where you feel hurt and short-changed over that. Bitterness may be creeping into your heart, because somehow that explains why you are imperfect too.

How? Well, you probably feel unloved, lonely, and spiritually oh-so thirsty and hungry for healing and wholeness. Maybe you got angry enough to rebel, and leave home, and look for love - but it seems so far, only in the wrong places.

If you were abused, or deeply bereaved, you may feel like you are continually dying inside. Yes, even if you have already received salvation by faith in Christ. This emotional and spiritual baggage slows us down. It hinders us from being all that we ought to be. You know it, but don't know how to get out of that state.

It is possible that either you have, or you still are living a life of rebellion against all the wrongs done you. This might include being sexually promiscuous, or angry at the world, or clinging to anyone who is friendly towards you, the hopes that they will finally make a princess out of you.

Whether or not you have experienced the dysfunctional family, or have grown up in a loving, complete, and healthy Christian home, there is a good chance you are a Christian. You love the Lord, and have a desire to pray more effectively. You are basically compassionate and tender- hearted, and easily burdened for the lost souls around us. In fact you probably have unsaved relatives and are at a loss to know how to persuade them to try the Lord Jesus.

You love to hear or read of dramatic conversions, just like I do. It just makes you believe in miracles all over again, right? Yes! We're idealistic and would like to see peace on earth and Jesus as King in every heart and mind!

That is exactly why I think you will identify so well with Ruthe, the heroine of my novel, Ruthe's Secret Roses. Ruthe Veer;

prays a lot,
has a bleeding heart for the hurting,
is a big sister,
rescues friends and strangers,
has creative ideas,
loves to give surprise gifts,
is loyal to friends,
dreams of love and marriage,
dreams of writing a book
goes the extra mile

Ruthe comes from a dysfunctional family of sorts. It has made her into a mature older sister, who feels responsible for the rest of the family, and for strangers when she meets them in crisis. She goes the extra mile for friends in need, and experiences real pain in her heart when they are hurting. Ruthe comes up with creative solutions to their problems which bring dramatic changes in to those new friends - and to her own life.

Even though she is convinced her family doesn't understand her, Ruthe is terribly loyal to them, and works hard at preparing a surprise new home for them, and at giving fine gifts at Christmas. Being a good big sister to Suzanne and Sharri is very important, even if they are as night and day, and one does not warm to her at all.

Just like you and me, this Ruthe dreams of true tender love and a perfect marriage, and of writing books, and continually helping people and saving some from death and destruction.

There's another facet to her; Ruthe has a super close friendship with Jesus, and talks to Him all the time about everyone and everything. When she's nervous or stuck about something, or worried about someone else's situation, she immediately switches her running conversations with the Lord to those matters, and in the course of all that - gets bright ideas for what to do next.

Not everybody does that, but they could!

You could. I know this because it is my own most precious friendship, and I gave this heroine, Ruthe, the joy of living that way too. Not always rosy, but full of good answers to problems.

Yes, I admit it. She's my alter ego. The person I've wished from my teens that I could be like. Just how much I have become like the Ruthe I admire, or how much she has become like the Ruth I am has become blurry in my mind. No sharp borders any more.

Ah, but you see, Ruthe and I are not the only ones. The friends I make often have these traits too. That's why, the more I try to draw up a profile of my friends, the more I find myself looking at Ruthe, and even myself. The old proverb must be true; "Birds of a feather flock together." Applied to us it simply means girls and woman of a certain type are attracted to one another. (Well, okay, I think there are some exceptions).

Still, now that I can visualize better who you are, it is easier to talk to you on this web site and in my articles and blogs. If you want to introduce yourself and help me to see another side of you, or what makes you unique and different from this character profile, then please do. Use the Get Acquainted forms on this site to talk to me. (Though... that area still needs rebuilding!)

Note: This RoseBouquet section of this site is being renovated. As I get the new pages ready, links to them will appear in the top area of this page, above this article. There will be pages on how to get friends, and how to keep them, and also open letters to certain specific types of friends.