Where you go I'll go, Where you stay, I'll stay.

If you have not read the story of Ruth and Naomi...please read. It is a beautiful story of friendship and a perfect glimpse into how God wants us to have intentional and authentic friends.

This song was written for authentic friendship-the story of Ruth and Naomi! It's beautiful.

"Orpah didn't want to leave Naomi but Naomi told her not to worry, she would be fine. So Orpah left to go back to her family. But no matter what Naomi said to Ruth, Ruth would not leave. "Don't ask me to leave. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your friends will be my friends and your God will be my God."

So Ruth and Naomi returned to Bethlehem together. It was a good thing Ruth went with Naomi because Bethlehem was very far away and Naomi couldn't have traveled all that way by herself. Notice that Ruth never complains but is a good friend to Naomi. She wasn't expecting anything in return, she just wanted to help.

When they got there Ruth decided that she should do some kind of work. It was harvest time, so she worked in the fields following behind the harvesters and picked up any barley that they had dropped.

The owner of the field came by to greet the harvesters and noticed Ruth in the field. He asked one of the harvesters who she was. "She came back from Moab with Naomi, that's all I know." Lucky for Ruth the owner of the field was Boaz, he was a kind man who believed in God. He had also been related to Elimelech (Naomi's husband that died).

Boaz went to go talk to Ruth, he said to her, "Don't go work in any other field but stay here with the other servant girls. I will make sure you are safe and whenever you are thirsty go and get a drink from the water jars." When Ruth heard this she bowed down to Boaz and asked, "Why are you being so nice to me, I'm not even from here."

Boaz replied, "I know what you've done for Naomi, you left your family and moved to a place you've never been. May the Lord reward you for your kindness."

Ruth thanked Boaz and continued with her work in the hot sun. Boaz even ordered his workers to drop extra barley so Ruth could have more for herself.

Ruth took all the barley home and shared what she had with Naomi. And eventually Ruth married Boaz and everyone was very happy!

Being a good friend takes a long time to learn. A good friend is loyal, which means you keep your promises and sometimes when you don't feel like being a friend; you are anyway. Sometimes our friends aren't perfect and they make mistakes but we make mistakes too, and we don't want our friends to leave us when that happens.

God gives us friends when we need them, and we should treat them like a gift from God. Just like in the story, Naomi could have insisted the women come with her, but she unselfish and wanted them to be free to go home to be with their families. And Ruth had such a good attitude and wanted to help, she moved away from everyone she knew and went to work to help Naomi. She didn't tell everyone what a good friend she was, she knew that she should be a friend like God wanted her to be.

Friends are one of my favorite gifts God blesses us with!

Authentic friends spend time with you, laugh with you, and help you feel the deepest joys in your life. They are vulnerable with you, will lay with you in your brokenness, but most of all, through their friendship, lead you to fall more in love with Jesus.


He knew which ones I needed. Good one, God. ;)

You are loved.

Thankful that someone did.

After God's heart.

When you ask little kids what they want to be when they grow up, they usually say some kind of occupation. Usually the answers are a doctor, a teacher, a rock star, a police officer, etc. Never do they say, "I want to be a servant", "I want to be kind", "I want to be patient", "I want to be enough", "I want to be just like Jesus."

I wish kids were taught what will really matter when they grow up.

This led me to think about myself.

Who I strive to be.
I know who I am now.
But I also know who I want to be.

We are gifts. “Who can find a virtuous woman? For her price is far above rubies.” (Proverbs 31:10) I think we all desire to be the kind of woman that is worth having.

I want to be a woman who lives my life on my knees.
A woman who prays more than she talks.
A woman who thanks Jesus every hour, every minute, every second, for things she may not have tomorrow.
A woman who becomes more of a "yes" kind of girl, like Mary, each day.
A woman who prays like David prayed.
A woman who fears the Lord.
A woman who asks Jesus what He wants me to look like. I am his Bride.
A woman who submits to the authority of her earthly father.
A woman who has a servant's heart.
A woman full of grace and joy.
A woman who is patient and kind.
A woman who grasps the fact that "I am enough."
A Proverbs 31 woman.
A woman who is more concerned with these words from Jesus: "Talk to me and let me tell you how much I love you" than any kind of compliment.

I want to be able to say: "That's who I AM."
I want these things to define Neely.

From now on. Forever. And ever. Amen. :)

Pray. Pray. PRAY.

Hi friends. :) As many of you may know, one of my very best friends is Caroline Yelverton. She is from Jackson, TN and we have been friends since the second grade. Her mom, Kim, was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer just two weeks ago. We made a prayer group on Facebook, but I thought this is just another way we can get more sweet prayers for her. I ask that you specifically pray for strength, faith, patience, and trust. Caroline called me today and asked, "Neely, are you scared? Do you think we will be okay?" God is bigger than we can imagine and this was all in His perfect plan for this sweet family. Even though this is not easy, for anyone, lets pray that God is ultimately GLORIFIED through all of this.

Cancer is NOT bigger than our God. Caroline: "God DOES give us what we can't handle. In hopes that we will fall to our knees and say, "God, I cannot do this alone. We need YOU." I know we will be okay, we may fall apart in pieces, but I know that our pieces can be put back together because we have such a great support system of friends and family. We are not in this alone."

Bless you friends! Thank you for praying. Below is information directly from Caroline about the cancer, and a little note from her. In the mean time, pray pray pray.

In Him, Neely

From Caroline: Hi friends! Hope everything is well with you - near and far. So, here's the news...About a week ago, we found out that our mom has adenocarcinoma of the pancreas- a fancy way to say pancreatic cancer. This cancer is advanced but common. However, there is no cure - as with so many other types of cancers. A tumor was found in her pancreas through a C-T scan and revealed that it is intertwined with some of her blood vessels surrounding the pancreas as well as in some of the tissue.

We were confused by this at first since the typical person who gets this type of cancer is usually a 70 year old, overweight, smoking male. Well, obviously, she is none of those things but nevertheless, cancer found her anyway. The family is doing well - as well as I would imagine anyone would take this news. Mom is not in any pain. As of right now, she and my Dad are meeting with different doctors to see which one "fits just right." We are considering M.D. Anderson in Houston, Tx and also some local doctors in Jackson. After they choose a doctor, she will begin chemo-radiation treatments. Sometimes, after treatment the tumors shrink enough to be operated on...but for now, it is inoperable. Anyway, I am sending this message in hopes that you will be compelled to pray pray pray! Pray for my mom, for the doctors, and for our family during this scary time. I believe in the power of prayer and I believe that God will bless us through this trying time.

Already, my family has been shown so much kindness and love and support from countless friends and family. For now, we are continuing life as normal. Franklin is still in 9th grade at South Gibson High and Maggie is in Murfreesboro, Tn at the Paul Mitchell Institute. I am at Murray during the week and will be at home for most of the weekends hereafter. Dad is very lucky to have a job that allows him to work at home so he is able to help Mom with anything she may need - he is such a wonderful husband and father. She is in absolutely no pain whatsoever and is very happy and at peace with everything that is happening. So here it is...I'm enlisting a prayer brigade so to speak. I ask that you please pray for our Mom, our family, our friends and I as we embark on this journey. It will not be easy- and it will probably become more difficult- but with God's help, we can get through anything. Love love love love love to you all. P.S. I'd be glad to answer any questions, etc you might have. My cellphone number is 731-616-3645 P.P.S. I'd advise you not to "google" this cancer as it is very "statistic oriented" and is extremely disheartening. Our Mom asks that we tell everyone, "WE COVET YOUR PRAYERS.""