Wisdom about Friendships

I want to talk about something from an angle that in my opinion doesn't get talked about very much, which is to arm the reader with relational wisdom.

The truth is, who we hang around plays a critical role in who we become. Do not think hanging out with people who don't love God or have a weak or stale relationship with God doesn't have its risks. You see, whenever we hang with someone, that person is in some fashion influencing us, and we them. The question is, how great is our influence with them versus how much an influence they are having in our own life. Do not deceive yourself- just because you are hanging out with an unbeliever does not automatically guarantee that you are leading them to Christ. We must be mature in this- and only let people with a similar or greater degree of maturity in Christ get close enough to us from an influencial perspective to mold our thinking in a positive way instead of away from God.

T.D. Jakes goes so far as to say that we should prune relationships where the other person isn't able to relate to you in terms of who you are becoming. The truth is we need people who can help us accomplish our destinies and often times we make the mistake of allowing people to get close to us for sentimental reasons instead of kingdome advancement reasons. These relationships can entangle us, and can be really hard to shake off- particularly if we have a hard time making new relationships. The key here is timing. Some relationships are so dangerous to our faith that we must do something about them immediately- where we are involved in circles of people who not only have no relationship with God but who are deeply entrenched in the world- these relationships, once recognized as problematic, must be removed quickly as they can entrench a person firmly in the world and quickly undercut and destroy a man's faith. Other relationships aren't nearly as dangerous and these (those that lack a common vision, that can't really help you press ahead in the seasons coming up) just need to be minimized as far as time spent, and allow God to prune it when needed.

Ultimately, as all of this is important, it is critical that you cultivate those relationships that can help you move into the seasons ahead. These are the people who will fight with you, either for a season, or possibly even for a lifetime. Invest in these relationships heavily, as they will make the biggest difference possible in your walk with God. And always keep an eye open for another person who can play this role- you never know where you might find it!

Your companion in Christ,
Sean