*FRIENDS MATTER*

Today would be a wonderful day to look at the companions you have chosen for your life and see if there is a change you wish to make.

At certain points in your life, when you were weak and powerless and knew no better, you may have chosen Fear and Doubt as your companions. They may have made you feel safe. Fear would always advise you not to try new things, not to take risks, not to do something where you might get in trouble, find yourself looking foolish, or heaven forbid, actually fail, make a major mistake.

And Doubt was always right there with him, telling you that it was good to listen to Fear, because he knew best, and after all, you weren't really up to that big risk anyway. Doubt was always there to reassure you that choosing Fear as your companion made sense, because after all, you are riddled with shortcomings and the risk of failure is always very great. And so Doubt kept you happy with Fear, happy to have him guiding you and keeping you safe.

Ah, but there are other companions, companions who can lift you out of safety and up into more wondrous things, like accomplishment, learning, growth, joy and vibrant life.

Take Courage, for example. Courage would tell you to take that risk, and would tell you that everything worth having is worth taking a risk for. And his good friend Faith would urge you on, telling you that you are capable of the most wondrous things, of things far beyond what you might think, certainly far beyond what anyone else might advise you. And Faith would also remind you that you are surrounded by help at all times, that the angels stand ready to help you on any enterprise of Courage and Faith.

Courage and Faith make a wonderful team and are a perfect antidote to Fear and Doubt. Fear and Doubt are bullies; they will back down instantly when you bring Courage and Faith to your side. They will back down and slink away, like the cowards they are.

But Courage and Faith have one more companion that you need to have on your team, and that is Love. Ah, yes, Love. Love of yourself, to bolster your Faith and Courage and make you understand that you are worth fighting for, worth risking for. Love will help you to understand that you are not only capable of everything, you are worth everything, and the trouble you take to learn and grow is right, is exactly what you need to do, because you deserve all of the love and caring that is lavished upon you day and night. You are a precious piece of this wonderful universe, and your happiness, your joy, is worth everything you do to achieve it.

Love will also teach you to love life, to see life in its wonderful vibrant colors, to appreciate life as an adventure. To love Life deeply as a passionate lover might, waking up to a dawn full of excitement and anticipation, waiting for Life to come to you, opening yourself to her embrace.

And Love will also teach you about other people, will give you the courage to see them for what they are: precious treasures, sometimes weak and surrounded by Fear and Doubt, but precious nonetheless, and worth your consideration, love and respect.

And together, these companions, Courage, Faith and Love, can overcome any obstacles which you may encounter in your life. They can teach you to leap across apparently insurmountable barriers, they can teach you to open up your life and glow, glow golden and shining, and become all that you are capable of becoming.

So look, today, at the companions you have chosen for your journey, this journey, this lifetime adventure. This just might be the perfect day to send Fear and Doubt packing, and to invite Courage, Faith and Love to enter your life in their place. This might be the perfect day to take a step forward with your new team, and see what life has to offer now.

Ah, yes. You are a great adventurer, a conquering hero. You are setting out on your quest and have brought with you the strongest friends and companions you could possibly find: Courage, Faith and Love. What could possibly stand before you and block your way? Nothing. Nothing at all.


				*FRIENDS MATTER*