Message Recap
Pastor Dave led us into week two of our Life Hacks series with the topic of friendship. Science has proven what the Bible has said since the beginning—it is not good to be alone. Healthy relationships have been proven to increase life expectancy and even help us fight off illness. Pastor Dave's point was:
Friends Matter
Those of us that are parents can admit that we are often concerned with our children making friends as well as who those friends are. This is also the heart of our Father God. Friends, no matter our age, are important. This led Pastor Dave to his second point:
Choose Wise Friends ... Wisely
Proverbs 13:20 says, "Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm." The values and convictions of those we walk closely with will undoubtedly influence our own values and convictions—for better or worse. He challenged us with the question: Who is shaping and molding you for good or bad?
The good news, Pastor Dave shared, is that God doesn't leave us hanging but gives us wisdom to guide us in our friendships.
Proverbs 6:16-19 says: "There are six things the Lord hates, seven that are detestable to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a person who stirs up conflict in the community. Here we both know what is good and what is not good."
- Haughty Eyes: Someone who thinks they are better than others.
- Lying Tongue: When it comes to friends, we must find those who value honesty—someone who can share both encouraging and challenging things with us.
- Hands that shed innocent blood: This is really about people that walk all over others.
- A heart that devises wicked schemes: This is someone who, even if not executing it, is planning evil in their mind.
- Feet that rush into evil: People that lack self-control.
- A false witness utters lies: While this might sound similar to point 2, this is actually addressing gossip and slander.
- One who spreads strife among brothers: this is a hot-headed person that causes trouble.
This list describes the kind of things that we should steer clear of in a friendship.
So how do we find the right kind of friends?
- Look in the right places. Church is one of the best places to find friends that make a difference.
- Take initiative. In order to make a friend, we must be a friend.
Pastor Dave concluded with Proverbs 18:24, "One who has unreliable friends soon comes to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother." Even our best human friendships will fail, but God's friendship will never fail us.
