Show me your friends and I will tell you who you are…
Have you heard this saying before? In my country, it is a pretty popular phrase and as a young girl, it would always cause me to roll my eyes when it was said. After all, just because I wanted to hang out with kids who were into drugs and other sordid activities did not mean that I would do these activities as well.
But, as you get older and wiser you realize that just maybe your parents were right.
What my parents never told me though is that the bible confirms this:
“Do not be misled: “Bad company corrupts good character.” 1 Corinthians 15:33
“Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm.” Proverbs 13:20
“Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers,” Psalm 1:1
“As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” Proverbs 27:17
“One who has unreliable friends soon comes to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.” Proverbs 18:24
As an adult, I continually have to weed people out of my life. My goal in life is to continually glorify God and love all; if someone enters my life who is contrary to that then I keep them at arm’s length.
Many today, may look at this and feel confident this does not apply to them. But I invite you to look not only at your close unit of friends. I have said to many young people, let me spend five minutes on your social media page and I can tell you who you are.
Many today, may look at this and feel confident this does not apply to them. But I invite you to look not only at your close unit of friends. I have said to many young people, let me spend five minutes on your social media page and I can tell you who you are.
You see, we now, live in a world where all friends may not be in close spaces, but we have now ‘friends’ that are worldwide. Many of these ‘friends’ do not share our beliefs or our lifestyle choices. So whereas you may not live a life of nudity, slander, coarse language or humor that puts down your fellow human being or in just poor taste, you find yourselves following individuals that partake in all of the above.
Case in point, on my facebook page, I have less than 50 ‘friends’. I have three basic rules for accepting a friend invitation:
- Is this a person that I speak to on a regular basis outside of social media?
- Is this a person that I want to share my personal or family pictures with?
- Is this a person that is in alignment with who I am and what I believe in?
If I don’t have coarse friends offline, why should I have them online? If I am careful about my friends offline, why should I not be careful of them online? If my social media page is a direct reflection of who I am then why should I not choose wisely who my friends are.
Food for thought: As a child of God, our life should reflect the grace and love of Jesus Christ. Choose your friends carefully.
Prayer: Abba Father, may we seek your guidance in choosing our friends carefully so that your kingdom will be glorified. In Jesus name. Amen
May God’s mercy, grace and peace be with you.
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