You may have noticed that along your journey you may have lost a few traveling companions. People you used to hear from on a regular basis drop out of sight. You find that the people that were drawn to you when you were at your lowest, or worst begin to disappear. You may even encounter that people you have know nearly your whole life, or at least for a large chunk of it, start to look at you strange. They are noticing the changes you are making in your life, they are seeing what God is doing and they really could care less. They look at your past, and want to keep you there. They laugh at the "new" you and try to discourage any positive growth. They want you to stay the way you were, you know the way they remember you. Here is what it looks like monster.
You were always the girl with tons of drama, you partied, you drank, you were up for last minute trips anywhere. You had lots of guys, lots of heartbreak, lots of bad breaks. You could sit for hours talking about all your drama, and they could shake their heads and commiserate with you, while secretly enjoying your pain. Why? Because they could tell themselves, "at least I am not her". The thing about getting over your past and moving forward is that sometimes people need to be left in the past as well. They will never see you as anything other then what you used to be. No matter how much you have changed, what you have learned or how far you have traveled you will always be the "old you" to them. Be careful of this monster. You will be tempted to live up to their low expectations. They will encourage you to revel in the bad behaviors of the Before, and they will rejoice in your backsliding. Or maybe you have made some new friends, maybe they remind you of the way you used to be. You think that you could be a good influence on them, after all you have come so far, you know so much. The danger of this is that you are new at this new life thing. They are more likely to draw you into their mess then you are to draw them out. 1 Corinthians 15:33 Be not deceived: evil companions corrupt good morals.
Proverbs 24 is full of warnings about becoming friends with people who are evil, who speak deceitfully, who plot against others, who lie in wait for trouble, who are foolish. In other words it is like my grandma used to say birds of a feather flock together. Take a good hard look at the people in your life, is it time to let some of them go? You never stop loving them, praying for them , treating them with respect, but you should be careful about the time you spend with them, what secrets of the heart you entrust to them, and what influence you allow them to have in your life. Words are powerful and you have been working hard at controlling the words you use, the thoughts you harbor in your heart and what you speak into your life. Doesn't it make sense to limit the words and thoughts that others speak into your life, especially when they are not for your highest good?
You have been doing such a good job cleaning out your life, getting rid of the junk, and filling your heart with the gifts of the spirit, now it is time to clean up your friendship roster. I wish you well in this monster and I pray that once they are gone God will send you the right people to share your life with. In fact I know he will. He has already started filling my life with people who genuinely care for me, who celebrate with me, who speak truth and love into my life. God is a God of relationship. He wants to have a relationship with you, and He wants you to have great relationships with others. Today, monster, I pray that for you.
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