THE FRIENDSHIP STAGE

“The righteous should choose his friends carefully,

For the way of the wicked leads them astray.”

Proverbs 12:26

You are the righteousness of God. As the righteousness of God, it’s important that you choose your friends carefully. Everyone is not your friend and some of the people whom you call “friends” really shouldn’t be. This is one of the main messages I try to get across to teens. And because they’re so young, many of them do not understand this important principle. Many learn the hard way, so it takes them until their adult years to fully understand. There are still some who will not learn the lesson though. I know because there are many adults who hang out with the wrong crowd as well.

If you want to live a successful and victorious life in Christ, you need to be connected with the right friends. You need what I call “Vision Partners”. These are people who are going in the same direction as you. You need to be close to people whose goals, dreams, and vision are just as big as yours. It is vital that you do so. If it wasn’t important, God wouldn’t have commanded us to do it.

Let me ask – who are you connected with? Think about that for a moment. Who are your closest friends? Who are you spending the most time with? Are your friends gossipers and backbiters? Do your friends constantly talk negative? Are they filled with doubt and unbelief? Do they cheat on their spouses? Are they heavy into alcohol or drugs? Are they thin-skinned and easily angered? Do they have bad tempers? Do they have funky attitudes? Are they always complaining? Do they lack vision and purpose? Do they always put limitations on you? Do they even want success?

Depending on your answers, you may need new friends. Of course, that doesn’t mean that you cut them off permanently. I’m not saying that you shouldn’t help them or be a friend to them. However, you will need to stop spending so much time with certain people.

It’s important to surround yourself with people who Love God just as much as you. Your friends should have a passion for the Word of God. They should be led by the Spirit. They should encourage you. They should believe in you, even when you don’t believe in yourself. Real friends get involved with your vision. They motivate you, push you, and pour into your life. They build you up and after conversations you feel edified. You should hear positive words when they speak. True friends shower you with Love. You can confide in them. They’re faithful to their spouses. They are very forgiving and they apologize when they make mistakes. They admit when they’re wrong. They look out for your best interest. They listen to you. They are truly on your side.

“Do not be fooled, ‘If good people keep company with bad people, the good people will become bad too.’”

1 Corinthians 15:33 WE

Don’t fool yourself into thinking that you can hang around the wrong people and not be negatively influenced. This is a deception from the enemy. You will become like the ones you spend the most time with. With that said, I can look at the people that you hang around and predict your future. If I can see what your friends are like, I can see what your future is like. Bad friends will lead you astray, but good friends will take you places.

BILLIE MILLER “The Motivational Minister” is a Bible teacher, speaker, and the #1 Amazon Bestselling Author of “Life in Righteousness: The Word is Your Life” and “30 Days of Righteousness: The Word is Your Life Action Plan”. Thousands of lives have been changed through Billie’s powerful teachings. For more information please visit www.BillieMiller.com. Follow Billie on twitter (@BillieMiller7) and on facebook (BillieMillerPage).