WHO ARE YOU WALKING WITH?
Proverbs 13:20 NKJV
20 He who walks with wise men will be wise,
But the companion of fools will be destroyed.
When I was in sales back in the mid-eighties, I worked for a medium-sized company that was very sales oriented. These were the days when they still provided company cars and expense accounts. How I even got that job was a miracle of the Lord, but that’s a story for a different day.
I was visiting with the vice president of sales at one of our national sales meetings, and he shared an interesting insight. He said that top management always paid attention to who hung out with whom during the sales meetings. The meetings were typically held at a resort over a three-day period. This VP said that the top producers hung out with the top producers and that the ones who were not making their numbers always gathered. Our proverb for today made me think of his words.
Who we walk with is important. The person who hangs out with wise people is going to wind up wiser. And conversely, the person who hangs out with foolish people is going to wind up in a bad place. There is an old adage that we are known by the company we keep. Whether we want to admit it or not, we are influenced by those around us. Wisdom rubs off, but so does stupid.
Looking at this principle across the broader spectrum of relationships can help us gain relational wisdom. If the people you are closely connected with are anti-God or anti-church, it will negatively impact you over the long run. If the people you are closely connected with are complainers or have a bad attitude it will affect you. In the Old Testament, God warned the nation of Israel not to get close to or intermarry with the nations around them. The purpose was so that God would have a people dedicated to Himself. But if the relationship with the pagan nations was too close, Israel would be influenced in the wrong direction, and often, they would stray off and actually worship the foreign gods.
So then the question we must all answer is, who are we around, and what kind of influence are they in our lives? It is not a stretch to say that he who walks with godly people will be godly. And the person close to people with no regard for God will not do well. This is a good yardstick for parents to utilize with their children. Who are the friends my kids run with is a question no parent should avoid.
There is another important question we must ask regarding the application of this proverb. What kind of influence am I to the people around me? As believers, we are not to avoid unbelievers but rather be an influence to them. We are the light of the world, and we need to shine. In John 1:5, the apostle John wrote that the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness does not overcome it. The goal is to be the one filled with godly wisdom that rubs off on all who walk with us.
PRAYER
Lord, show me if I am being influenced in the wrong way and help me be a light to those around me who are walking with me.