Is It Influence or Infection?
People can be poison. Some use friendship as a dumping ground, others see relationships as a safe place to throw out scraps of cynicism for you to feed on.
Feasting on a diet of judgement may taste good to you, but it is good for you?
What are You Hungry For?
One who is full loathes honey, but to one who is hungry everything bitter is sweet. ~Proverbs 27:7, English Standard version
You cannot eat everything the world feeds you and remain healthy. God is calling you to develop a discerning palate, one purged of the poison of the past and ready to taste the sweetness of salvation.
The goodness of God brings a fullness of life no foolishness can satisfy.
Taste and see that the Lord is good. Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him! ~Psalm 34:8
So, what's got you sick?
Is It Influence or Infection?
Good or bad, what surrounds us infiltrates us.
Ever notice how people can start to follow someone on social media, then eventually start to sound like who they followed? They want what the influencer wants, talk like the influencer talks, try to live like the influencer lives. The same happens to us in everyday life. Good or bad, once we connect to someone in a meaningful way, it can affect how, where, and with whom we chose to do life.
So, since we all have this tendency to follow, how do we make sure we aren't following somebody off a cliff?
How do you know if the relationship is influence of infection?
Is Your Identity in Christ!
Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of himself. He had equal status with God but didn’t think so much of himself that he had to cling to the advantages of that status no matter what.
When you know wo you are, you don't feast on just anything! Seeking identity in anyone else other than the Christ that saved you sets you up to take in trash.
Are They a Problem or a Problem-Solver!
The best influencers are not self-promoters but problem-solvers:
When the time came, he set aside the privileges of deity and took on the status of a slave, became human! Having become human, he stayed human. It was an incredibly humbling process.
Jesus solved the problem of sin through the solution of salvation. Every influence in your life may not be Christian, but do they seek out solutions? Do they have a strategy for success? Jesus knew what it would take to change your life. What do they bring to the table? If the only thing they give you is them - all day, all the time - spit them out!
How Does Their Influence Change Your Status?
Change your circle, change your life. The goodness of God brings a fullness of life no foolishness can satisfy.
Is there any encouragement from belonging to Christ? Any comfort from his love? Any fellowship together in the Spirit? Are your hearts tender and compassionate? Then make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one mind and purpose. Philippians 2:1-2, new Living Translation
Listen, I love chocolate but it's bad for my system. I have to navigate my life to avoid that sweet and delicious poison.
Whatever or whoever is making you sick (physically, emotionally, spiritually) is not safe. The best detox is deliverance.
Prepare your palate to sit and eat at the table Heaven has prepared for you.
Nothing else will taste so sweet.
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