Scripture
Don’t be fooled by those who say such things, for “bad company corrupts good character.”
~I Corinthians 15:33, NLT
Quote
Become wise by walking with the wise; hang out with fools and watch your life fall to pieces.
~Solomon
Sociologist believe we tend to take on the character traits of those we hang out with and admire. The big problem is that many times young folks admire the wrong people. We especially tend to admire people who are wealthy and successful. The problem with wealth is that most of it is gained in selfish and unscrupulous ways. There are not many wealthy people who deserve admiration. In the corporate world successful people are often ruthless and unprincipled. They are committed to doing whatever it takes to climb the corporate ladder. There is no place for God in their life and they scoff at loving their neighbor.
Money and character are two separate issues: you can have money with no character or character with no money. Solomon said in Proverbs 22:1, A good name is more desirable than great riches; to be esteemed is better than silver or gold. Money is not a cure all and it will not fulfill your deepest longing. I know people who have devoted their life to making money: they have a singular goal and that is to be rich. They have convinced themselves that this will garner the attention and respect they crave. Have you ever considered the sacrifices they are making to acquire the wealth. Jesus said, “What does it profit a man to gain the whole world and lose his own soul.” I plead and I beg but people I love want to hang out with the wrong kinds of people and you cannot do that without paying a price. Choose your friends carefully. Admire and emulate people with proven character. Money and success are over rated.
My Sundays still seem like Sunday because I go to the church building to record the service but the church is not in the building. Baptist have been notorious at confusing the church with a building but the virus has reminded us that the church is the people and the people are infinitely more important than the building.
I don’t know anything: I am ignorant like everyone else but my guess is that the virus is going to get worse and I do hope I am wrong. My hope is that it will peek soon and start trending down. This is my hope. Only the LORD knows what will happen.
June and I called our GP members yesterday to check on them and I had some interesting conversations: one with an older couple who do not have a computer or a smart phone. They have no access to YouTube or FaceBook. My conversation with him and the comparison between the computer {internet} and TV made me do some thinking. Are computers evil? Would we be better off without them? The answer to both is NO! Does the internet pose some problems? Sure and porn is one of the major ones but if I had to guess, I would say TV has had a worse influence on this country than the Internet. You are nuts if you get your info from the TV. I don’t know of a more slanted and bias form of media. The first thing to go at my house will be the TV; the internet stays. That’s just my opinion.
Have a great week!