Proverbs 13:20- "Walk with the wise and become wise; associate with fools and get in trouble"
Lately, I've been learning a lot about choosing my friends wisely, and the influence that they have on us. Our peers, are the biggest influence in our life.
These past few years, I've had a lot of different friendships, over half of them, i lost, and haven't talked to them in a long time. But friendships come and go. (Proverbs 18:24-A true friend sticks close than a brother.) But looking back on the friendships i had with those people, now that i have had a chance to grow, and find myself in the Lord, I see how much they truly changed who i was. See.. We often times are entirely convinced that our friends don't change us, we say how no way our friends are gonna change who we are, we say how they don't let them influence us, and that we know who we are and don't care what people think. But the truth is, no matter what, who we hang around is who we are going to become. We don't always notice it though. Looking back, i started to become EXACTLY like the people i hung around and became friends with. I can especially see it because i have always kept journals, and when i read the ones from just last year, i get so disappointed in myself, i am disgusted on how conceited i became, how much i was just concentrated on myself, how i blew off my friends and thought bad things about them. Why was i like that? Because the friends i had at the time were like that. Just because their "Christian" doesn't mean thats it automatically makes them ok to be friends with. Cause their are a lot of people that call themselves "Christians" but they don't life the life of a true Christ follower. We need to evaluate our friendships right now.. are the people we are spending time with, people that we would like to become? If you want to be a strong man/woman of God, then surround yourself in the environment and people whom are people of God. People that can inspire you, encourage you, and help you to be that person. People that have the same desire and longing as you do. To be the person that God calls you to be. Find people with that common interest. If you have someone in your life that is influencing you in a negative way, and pulling you away from who you long to be.. then consider ending that relationship, or limiting your time with them. And when you are with them, to be an example to them in your words, the way you live, your love, your faith, and your purity.
great post!
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