I was so glad to see him
My friend, my very good friend
I was afraid I'd never see him again
I thought I had lost him
We sat by the fire eating the fish we had caught
Several of our close friends were with us
Laughing, telling stories
Doing the sorts of things good friends do
I watched as the sun hung low over the lake
Faces lit up by the flicking of the fire
A soft spring breeze came in off the hillside
Yet in the midst of all this beauty
Al I could think about was about what had happened to my friend
I watched as he carried on with my brother
How he laughed at the antics of my business partner
Then he turned and looked me straight in the eye
His smile turned serious
I thought he was going to ask me what was wrong
After all, it was unlike me to be the silent one
Often I was the life of the party
What happened next I was unprepared for
It was the question that told it all about me
And the statement that made me question
With a penetrating look he said,
"Do you love me more than these"
I answered, "Yes, Lord, you know I do"
And He answered, "Feed my lambs"
Three times He asked me
And the third time my heart was broken
I knew what He was really telling me
He was telling me He knew exactly how much I loved Him
And that He was calling me to love Him more
He was calling me deeper and deeper
With tears in my eyes
And a sense of deep sorrow
I spoke to Him the only words I knew to say
Words that I knew would fall short of how I felt
Yet somehow I knew He understood
And so I said, "Lord, you know all things, you know how I love you"
Then He answered, "follow me"
I suddenly realized the question wasn't just a question
It was also an answer
He knew I had thought I had lost Him
That somehow when I had forsaken Him, He had forsaken me
Yet there He was
I'd always known He loved me
Now I knew I loved Him too
In that moment I saw the glimmer in His eye
He smiled, that way only He could smile
For a moment the whole world consisted of just the two of us
Just me and Him, together
The telling question
Had brought a telling moment
I was forever changed
I'd never be afraid of losing Him again
![[pulsating cross]](astar2.gif)
