Good Times With Andy Kind

I don’t have many friends, so the friends I have I tend to treasure.  There is one amazing friend I developed in my time in Stoke-on-Trent who walked with me a lot in my last three years in the city, and I’ve deliberately not maintained contact with him in the last year and what that has done is made me appreciate friendship all the more.

That friend is not Andy Kind.

Andy Kind is someone I came across around three years ago and his impact on my life has been hugely significant.  Time spent with him has been some of the most refreshing, vulnerable, honest, searching, deep and transformative times I’ve ever had with a brother in Christ.  Unsurprisingly for that among many other reasons friendship with Andy Kind means a great deal to me.

We were able to keep contact since I left the Manchester area and finally after almost 18 months we caught up together and spend some quality time together.  It’s often the case when you catch up with someone that there’s not enough time and just when you get in the swing of things it’s time to depart once more.  I can say, however, I thoroughly enjoyed every moment with my dear brother and although I was sad to see him go I was pleased that God had granted me precious hours with this brilliant man.

Spending time with him allowed me to get a view on how time has changed since the last time we met and some of the journey he’s made and a lot of the journey I made.  That is what makes friendships so valuable, getting those reality checks on what’s really going on and how certain questions that have not been asked before or sentiments that trigger off emotions that had evidently been dormant for so long.  There is something healthy about this and strengthens the ties of relationships.

Andy Kind remains a firm favourite with the Dryden Family. Zoë was but a newborn the last time Andy had seen her and at first she was wary of who he was, but I am glad that by the end of his time with us, she was confident to console him affectionately with pats on his arm.  Likewise Deborah and Abigail regard Uncle Kind with affection.  Needless to say Authrine and I salute the man for what he has done and the man he is and continue to pray tat he will continue to grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus and watch the impact that has on his family and vocation.

Spending time with him reminds me again of the power of good friendships and how they are hallmarks of the life of church where the family is made up of brothers and sisters who go beyond formality and are real with each other.  Here the deal is enjoying the ebbs and flows of every day life with a vitality and connection to each other that enriches life.  I am incredibly blessed to have a brother in Andy Kind who is that kind of brother.  Long may that continue.

For His Name’s Sake

Shalom

dmcd