Today has been quite an inspired day, beginning with the very first thought. I awoke this morning from a quite realistic dream. I will not go into the details in order to keep myself from talking of others as I shouldn't. Basically, my dream consisted of me having a verbal argument with a friend of mine after she treats me like crap. I do my best to debunk the imaginary arguments she lays against me with no avail. The more I try to reason with her. The louder her voice becomes and the less friendly she becomes. As with most dreams I was awoken before my story meet a resolution, but this dream sets into action a conversation with myself.
In this conversation I relished the fact that sometimes people become something totally different than what they were the first time you met them. I have spent most of the day trying to answer this question: If a person you have known for a while slowly becomes someone totally different (in a negative way) than they were when you met them, at what point does one break off this relationship? I cannot definitely come up with an answer to this because I believe that it is quite different for each and every situation.
I guess overall, I'm trying to encourage whoever reads this and myself to evaluate your relationships. What roles are these people playing in your life? Are your "Christian" friends bringing you closer to Christ or pulling you farther away? Do find yourself wanting to complain about this person or encourage them?
I think its easy to continue hanging out with a person that we probably shouldn't be hanging out with if we really enjoy their company. I also can think of numerous times in my life where I haven't wanted to hang out with the people that I should hang out with. The people that pull me closer to Christ versus tearing me away.
Dear God, I pray that I would never continue on an incorrect course because of the ease of the walking.
ohhhh how i wish i hadn't dealt with friendships like this.... on several occasions. it kills me to see friends that i held to a higher standard buckle & give-in to wordly & illogical ways of thinking/behaving. i'm constantly in fear of ever causing a friend to stumble in their walk w/ Christ, due to some absurd downward spiral in my life..... and i know worrying is pointless, but I'd be a liar if I said that something like that doesn't creep in and make me worry about some alternate reality where I'm (that) guy
ReplyDeleteHey man,
ReplyDeleteI think a lot of people think "oh we're Christians...forgive and forget" but notice the Bible tells us to Forgive...Jesus told us to Forgive 70 x 7 but NEVER did he talking about Forgetting. Just because we forgive someone doesn't mean we have to let them back in. We have to be smart.
The old saying goes "Fool me once, shame on you...fool me twice, shame on me"
I think you are on the right track!
Brian