Do not be deceived: bad company corrupts good habits.
~ 1 Corinthians 15:33 (NKJV)
Do not be deceived: bad company corrupts good morals. (NASB)
Do not be misled: bad company corrupts good character. (NIV)
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No matter what version of the Bible you use, the message is still loud and clear: if you spend time with ungodly people, their habits and practices will rub off on you. So often today we seem to believe that it's good for us to be friends with ungodly people, because we believe that we'll be able to change them. My father often reminds us of how untrue this is-instead of us influencing them, they will influence us. It doesn't matter how strong you think you are when it comes to standing up for the Lord and resisting temptation, the way your ungodly friends act is exactly the way you will start acting if you don't do something to stop the friendship. It is biblical to be friendly to these people, but we are not to be friends with them.
The choosing of friends is so important and it is crucial that we practice wisdom and discernment in this process. Before spending much time with a person and calling them your friend, there are some questions that you must ask yourself first. These questions include the following: "Is this person known to be godly and upright or impure and ungodly?" "Is this person an encourager and edifyer?" "When I'm with this person, does he/she encourage me to stand up for the Lord and follow Him in everything?" "What kinds of things does this person like to spend his/her time doing, and are these habits godly or unrighteous?" "If I had a child, would I want my child to spend time with this person and be friends with him/her?" "What kind of movies, music, tv shows and books is this person interested in?" If any warning signals go off in your head during this questionnaire, then it is best to just keep this person as an aquaintance and not as a dear friend.
With friends that you already have, these are also questions that you need to ask yourself about that person. And once again, if warning signals go off in your head, then it is best to stop the friendship. "But this person will be mad at me!!" you might say. Well, let me ask you this: Is it more important what this person thinks of you, or whether or not you're obeying the Lord? Having ungodly friends hurts our witness for the Lord, and is therefore sinful. Ask the Lord for strength and the right words to say if/when you are forced to break off a friendship with someone. He will help you and be there with you, and thus you have nothing at all to fear. It will be hard and sad to break off a friendship, but this is something that sometimes we must do. And the Lord will give us the strength to do His will.
Rebekah,
ReplyDeleteHow true your devotional is. I have a perfect example in my life that resonates with this theme. I had two friends during my high school years that I did everything with and two situations occured in which I noticed how they really are and we ended the friendships. It just occured to me that God knew these relationships were wrong and was encouraging me to move on and looking back on them I am a much better person for it. Thank you for allowing me to see this.
Becky,
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for your comment! I too have a testimony very similar to yours. Thanks for sharing, and I'm so glad that the devotional ministered to you!!
Blessings,
Rebekah
Rebekah, how thankful I am that God has taught me this lesson. Honestly, the people who you associate with influence you, like it or not. I am so happy to say that the friends I have now influence me for the better. (It wasn't always this way, but thankfully, the friendships were quickly dissolved.)
ReplyDeleteMy family also shares your opinion. More often than not, people who say they are going to be a good influence wind up getting influenced. This is why we struggle with public school so much.
Thank you for your comment on my blog!
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome, Anna. Thanks so much for visiting mine as well!
ReplyDeleteGreat thoughts, Rebekah! And, for your information, you're now linked to on Maidens of Worth. =)
ReplyDeleteElla,
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for visiting my blog!! I hope you return often. I,too, had to go through the process of ending friendships that I saw were not the Lord's will for me. Through my amazing new church, www.christchurchofchattanooga.com, I have met about 6 girls that are completely likeminded, and I can't even begin to tell you what a blessing that is to me!!
So true! That's one of the reasons I'm homeschooled! :) Honestly, even private, Christian school is horrible these days! I had a friend that attended such a school, and obviously the only way that school could be called Christian was because they taught a Bible class. Apart from that, it was just like a secular public school. That's also one of the reasons my family is now against youth groups. I attended the one at our old church, and it ended up being really bad for me. I was surrounded by teens that called themselves Christians, but that didn't show it by the way they dressed, talked, etc. It was horrible! Especially since it was a supposed to be a church group!!!
Thank you so much, Anna!!!
ReplyDeleteLovely post, Rebekah. Ending friendships is always painful, but when we do the Lord's will, we will be blessed immensely!
ReplyDeleteMrs. Brigham,
ReplyDeleteSo true! Thank you for your kind comment. It's so great to have you visiting my blog! I hope you come back by often! :)