“Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm.” Proverbs 13:20
As parents, one of the (many) nightmares we have when our teens start high school is “who will they befriend?” It’s a major concern, because we’ve all been there in our distant memories and we know how it works. Which crowd will little Johnny gravitate toward? Which friend group will he find appealing? Who will let him in? Will he join jocks, nerds, popular or… (gulp) “other”?
High school relationships are key for our kids as they are gradually molded and shaped into young adults. They are certainly not the ‘be all and end all’, but those friends WILL have a lot of influence on Johnny, whether we like it or not. Will his group be rash or sensible, partiers or bookworms, obsessive with appearance or only interested in intellect?
It’s no wonder we look on and (subtly) try to nudge them in what we perceive to be the most wholesome direction. We want their friends to be smart and shy away from wrong; to be supportive and have each other’s backs always. We wish the very best for our darlings, and we need them to make good moral choices along the way. Above all, we long for them to have WISE friends.
What do we do? We communicate with them (sometimes easier said than done), we encourage them to stand their ground and not cave to peer pressure merely to fit in, but most importantly we pray. A lot.
…“WALK WITH THE WISE”…
Such timeless words for humanity. Advice for us, whatever our age. Granted, our friends are highly influential in our younger years, but what about as adults? Surely, we should surround ourselves with savvy companions rather than those who will lead us to make foolish choices. Older, wiser couples who will give us sound marital advice, mentors who will help us make great decisions for our families. Have discussions, deep conversations, accept prayer and Godly advice from the wonderfully wise people God puts in our lives, and it will save us from making mistakes where we will “suffer harm”.
God puts these words in the Bible because he loves us passionately and wants the very best for us. It’s down to us to listen to Him and then choose to walk on the wise side. Who will you choose to walk with?
