Show Me Your Friends

My son, if sinners entice you, Do not consent. If they say, “Come with us, Let us lie in wait for blood, Let us ambush the innocent without cause; Let us swallow them alive like Sheol, Even whole, as those who go down to the pit; We will find all kinds of precious wealth, We will fill our houses with spoil; Throw in your lot with us, We shall all have one purse,” Proverbs 1:10-14

 Show me your friends and I’ll show you your future. Many times we think the art of making friends comes down to who’s nice to me. Despite the shortfalls of nice, a polite smile works better than a grumpy frown during a first impression. But friendship is more of a bond than the first few minutes of meeting someone. In a true friendship, you share values, stories, and memories.  

Johnny and Timmy have been friends since they met at work. They quickly hit it off after learning the other’s fondness for old muscle cars. Since then, they attend car shows together and help each other work on one another’s fixer upper. But Timmy also an addictive gambler. Johnny tolerates Timmy’s addiction so he can continue the friendship. He’s even bailed Timmy out of a few binds here and there. Timmy throws his money away to gambling and Johnny throws his money away at Timmy. Show me your friends and I’ll show you your future.

In the proverb above, we see bad friends can lead you to rob a bank and millions of other stupid ideas. But rarely do these friends introduce themselves with a handshake and a pitch to join them for the next decade in the state penitentiary. Solomon warns us to always keep our guard up. And James invites us to be friends with God first and foremost (James 2:23; 4:4). The secret to getting rid of bad friends is to find a better one. If God is your best friend, He will entice you toward things that are good for you.