Friends of Fools

Okay, this one will be a bit on the controversial side - beware!

Through reading/studying Proverbs and Ecclesiastes recently I've noticed a few things about the fools versus the righteous. Fools pick friends who legitimize their folly. They will never call the friend out on their sins - no, they actually encourage the folly to continue and pull the person deeper and deeper into the trap of sin. Growing the sinful nature, not the Spirit of God in the lives of their "friends", a fool derails even the strongest of people, simply by "having fun" in the folly which will inevitably destroy their lives. Fools give up too easily – they don’t fight through – they have the mindset "when the going gets tough, I give up". The second they the cards don't fall in their favor, they run for the hills or blame others for the pit they have dug for themselves.

The end of the matter is better than the beginning. Do you ever notice 6 months after a severely challenging time in your life you're able to look back and realize how minimal that "crisis" truly was? The sad part about this is that often the fools dwell on the "good 'ol days" and desire to keep living the days of their youth, even though life keeps going forward. That's the very reason that we still see 30-40 year old grown men and women acting like teenagers. They truly believe that they are still allowed to get away with the life of a child.

I find that I myself fall into the category of "childish" every now and then. I fall back on the childish ways because they used to get me the attention I craved. One such way that I've done this, even in the past month, is with Facebook. I intentionally went on and deleted many pictures of me and some friends just to see if they would notice that I did so - trying to get them to make notice of me. The thing is, the childish things of life ALWAYS backfire and just prove how immature we truly are. I'm so frustrated that even to this day I still do stupid things just to get someone riled up over something. Instead, why not just go to the source of the problem and converse like normal grown, responsible, mature humans? So much easier said than done. We so often resort to the tactics of the sinful nature/fools instead of going by why the wise would do.

The fool is all talk and no follow through. They're not people of their word, and are not people of integrity and character – because their promises are empty. Our conduct comes directly from our heart and it's evil or righteous desires. When we sin against others, we want grace. But when other’s sin against us we want revenge. Isn't that the truth! We expect others to just up and forgive us immediately, but when they come to us and ask for forgiveness we snub them. Who are we to dish out such disdain?

The life of the righteous is not an easy path to follow. It's very much less traveled. But the great thing about attaining and striving for a righteous life is that the Lord directs, blesses, and guides your path to His desires and His refinements in your soul.

People who love you, truly love you, will speak truthfully to you. Those that walk with the wise always grow wiser as it says in Proverbs. These friends will not give you lies, but truth. Not protecting your feelings, but encouraging Christlikeness in your life. When we’re being foolish, and walking down a path that does more harm than good - it's encouraging to know there is a friend there that will bring you back to the path the Lord has called you to. Don’t you want a good friend standing beside you, calling you out on your choices? The wounds of a true friend are to be trusted much - for they have your best interests at heart.

What kind of friendships do you have currently? Are they with the fools meddling in their folly, thus leading to your downfall? Or are you surrounding yourself with likeminded, trustworthy friends who have Christ as the center of their lives?

"He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm." - Proverbs 13:20

Another night of ramblings... but this topic has just been on my mind for awhile now. Choosing the right friendships is vital to growth, encouragement, and support.