As the weather has warmed up, I’m noticing more kids playing outside and perusing our neighborhood together. Some of the peers I find my young sons hanging with don’t always demonstrate
qualities
I’d like them surrounded by; slowly I’ve noticed their behavior getting worse, with poor choices being made and no short supply of snappy responses. Last week I asked my oldest, “Why are you hanging around with them? They seem like a bad influence.” To which he immediately scowled and retorted, “Nuh uh!” I realized my remark wouldn’t get us anywhere close to the perspective I hoped he’d consider. I needed to show him a heart of
understanding
instead of a heart of
judgment
.
I apologized, acknowledged my shortcoming and tried again. “I noticed you have some new friends and I’m curious.” Followed by an intentional pause, just long enough for my son to know I was
sincere
and become curious too- “About what?” he asked. Now was my chance! “What do you enjoy about being with them? What don’t you enjoy about being with them?” Non-judging, open questions were easy for him to recognize and paved the way for a productive conversation about how we can be
induced
, sometimes even unknowingly, by the people we hang around with.
Recently I started watching a new show containing violence, foul language, and lust. After a few weeks of watching, I noticed myself taking on like
characteristics
, and realized the same thing was happening to me that happened to my son.
What we allow into our lives has the potential to
take root and produce fruit
, good or bad. If we are not
wise
to what we let filter in and out, we can easily end up dropping our standards of ethics and morality without even being fully aware of it! Proverbs has several great verses pertaining to this topic, but I think Paul sums it up best in 1 Corinthians 15:33 with “Do not be misled: “Bad company corrupts good character.”” Thanks for the reality check, Paul! Now is as good a time as any to evaluate the company
influencing
our lives.
