Friends to have as Christians

Do you have friends who are building you up or running you down? 

Scripture tells us “Bad company ruins good morals,” (1 Corinthians 15:33, NASB). Bad company also runs you down. And the last thing a mom needs is to be running on empty. 

On the other hand, scripture also tells us “As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another” (Proverbs 27:17). 

I’m a person who needs to be sharpened. I also need to be refreshed, warned, advised, encouraged, and understood. There’s a lot that I need in a friend. And as a mom, I’m willing to bet you do, too. 

Sometimes you and I don’t actually choose our friends… They just find us and before we know it, we’re hanging out with someone who is either helpful in our lives or a hindrance. 

However, Scripture tells us “the righteous choose their friends carefully” (Proverbs 12:26).

Here are some suggestions for the type of friends every mom needs. Use it as an inventory in your own life to see if you have a healthy, or unhealthy mix of company.

1. The fun friend. Let’s admit it. We all need someone who is fun to be with, who makes us laugh, who encourages us to set the work aside, have some fun, live a little. You and I can’t spend every waking moment with this friend because if we did, we’d never get anything done. But if you have a friend who can balance the fun with responsibility and maturity, and encourage you to let go of work now and then and not take yourself so seriously, you have found a treasure. Who encourages you to not take yourself so seriously? 

2. The firm friend.  Although you and I need them, too (we’ll get to her later), we need a friend who will firmly tell us what we need to hear, not just what we want to hear. While your fun friend may encourage you to laugh it off or live for the moment, your firm friend will often remind you of what’s best for you, even if it isn’t fun or even comfortable. He does this because of his love for you and his ability to see beyond the moment to what really matters. And if she’s able to be firm with a generous dose of grace and love, hold onto her. She is a rare gift. Who tells you what you need to hear instead of just what you want to hear? 

3. The forward-moving friend. You’ve seen. You probably even admire her. She gets excited about New Year’s resolutions and seeks out people to join her in them each January. talks about what he’s reading, what she’s learning in her Bible study, or the latest class she’s taking to explore something new. Do you have someone to challenge you to be more healthy, read more books, think more deeply, hone your skills? We all need to keep moving forward personally, emotionally, physically, and spiritually so that by the time the kids move out, we know exactly what we are going to do next. Who challenges you to move beyond where you are right now?

4. The faithful friend. Every mom – every woman – needs a friend who will be there through thick and thin. Through the dark days, through the sick days, through the days you are having difficulty and just need someone to understand. But not only is the faithful friend always there, but he’s loyal – meaning he would never talk behind your back or re-evaluate the friendship if he thinks he’s giving more than you are.  A faithful friend doesn’t keep track of how many times he has called you vs. how many times you take the initiative to call him The person will pick up with you wherever the two of you left off. The opposite of the faithful friend is the gossip or critic.

 Proverbs 16:28 says “a whisperer separates close friends.” Your faithful friend is the one who will never be whispering to others about you. Who can you always depend on, regardless of season or schedule? 

5. The “faith-filled” friend. Do you tend to be a worrier? Do you stress out when a situation seems out of control? If you hang around others who do the same you will fuel each other’s fire of fear and doubt. That’s why every mom needs a faith-filled friend who doesn’t worry or talk about the “what ifs” but trusts in the Lord and helps fill up others with her faith. Yes it’s normal to have concern about your children and other situations that appear unsafe, uncertain, or unhealthy. But when concern crosses the line into worry, doubt, and fear, that’s when you need your faith-filled friend to remind you who is ultimately in control. The faith-filled friend also fills your tank and leaves you feeling more energized and stronger by being in her presence. This world is filled with drainers who empty us through cynicism, critical talk, complaining, and gossip. But a faith-filled friend will build you up with her attitude, and perspective. She  or He is also quick to forgive and is the opposite of the angry or bitter woman who holds onto offenses and drags others down by the issues in her life. Proverbs 22:24 tells us not to befriend the bitter person:

 “Do not make friends with a hot-tempered person, do not associate with one easily angered.” But instead, we are to surround ourselves with others who can sharpen our faith and fill our tanks.  Who strengthens your faith when it’s faltering and fills your tank when you’re running on empty? 

The older I get the more I find that true friends are few and far between. If you have at least one friend in each category (or all the categories are covered by the few friends you have) you are rich beyond measure. And if there’s a friend on that list that you don’t yet have, you know what to look for… and the kind of friend to be as well. 

7 top Christian celebrities of Hollywood

 These are the list of  7 top celebrities who are Hollywood stars but are Christians by profession.

 

Jobs you can't do

Many Christians hold a decidedly unbiblical view of work. Some view it as a curse, or at least as part of the curse of living in a fallen world. Others make a false distinction between what they perceive as the sacred—serving God—and the secular—everything else. And others make it into an idol, expecting it to provide them with their identity and purpose in life as well as being a source of joy and fulfillment that only God can provide.

Sometimes we may not realize that Christians can also work outside the walls of the church or the Christian name, we tend to limit ourselves to the “helping” professions. Christians can be doctors, nurses, teachers, child care workers, social workers, law enforcement officers, or counselors. But  however a businessman? A lawyer? An IT guru? An inventor? A builder? A fashion designer? A news anchor? A TV producer? 

A faulty view of work comes from believing that spiritual, sacred things are far more important than physical, secular things. Real work, people can think, is serving God in full-time Christian service, and then there’s everything else running a very poor second. This can induce us to think either too highly of ourselves or too lowly of ourselves. We can think, “Real work is serving God, and then there’s what others do” (which sets us up for condescension), or “Real work is serving God, and then there’s what I have to do” (which sets us up for false guilt and a sense of “missing it”).
It’s an improper way to view life as divided between the sacred and the secular. ALL of life relates to God and is sacred, whether we’re making a business presentation or changing soiled diapers or leading someone to faith in Christ. It’s unwise to think there are sacred things we do and there are secular things we do. It all depends on what’s going on in our hearts.

You can engage in what looks like holy activity like prayer and Bible study with a dark, self-centered, unforgiving spirit. Remember the Pharisees? And on the other hand, you can work at a job in a very secular atmosphere where the conversation is littered with profanity, the work is slipshod, the politics are wearisome, and yet like Daniel or Joseph in the Old Testament you can keep your own conversation pure and your behavior above reproach. You can bring honor and glory to God in a very worldly environment. God does not want us to do holy things, He wants us to be holy people.

 We tend not to list these jobs among the most desirable work for Christians. There is nothing biblical about such a limiting stance however we should be careful about going into jobs such as modelling and military for their inherent nature as some others that have some intricacies that are somewhat demanding.

 Christians can consider almost any career. Paul wrote to the Corinthians, "Only let each person lead the life that the Lord has assigned to him, and to which God has called him. This is my rule in all the churches. . . . Each one should remain in the condition in which he was called. Were you a bond-servant when called? Do not be concerned about it. (But if you can gain your freedom, avail yourself of the opportunity.) . . . So, brothers, in whatever condition each was called, there let him remain with God" (1 Corinthians 7:17, 20-21, 24). Believers should not leave their current work and become missionaries or pastors. He tells them to remain where they are and serve God there. 


 "And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him" (Colossians 3:17). It is not so much what we are doing that matters, as for whom we are doing it. 
We glorify God when we work hard and cheerfully, whether as a pastor, an investor, an actor, a stay-at-home mother, or a barista.
 Career should however not become the number one priority in your life where our relationship with God takes a back seat, family takes a back seat, even your relationship with other people takes a back seat to work. Everything gets filtered through the question, “What impact will this have on my christian walk and life?”

Walking in love

The pain of conviction that comes through the godly rebuke of a friend who speaks truth in love is a real gift (Proverbs 27:6). But what if you’re the one sinned against, and you’re hurt because of unkind words, betrayal, or manipulation by a person you consider a friend? How do you address it with your friend, and how do you move past the pain and toward reconciliation
In the midst of your hurt, trust that God is working in your relationship to grow you both in the grace and knowledge of Christ: “Trust in him at all times, O people” (Psalm 62:8).
It is one’s glory (or beauty) to overlook an offense (Proverbs 19:11). This requires prudence, patience, maturity, and wisdom. Overlooking an offense adorns the gospel and is a loving response that demonstrates we are indeed Christ’s disciples (John 13:35).

In the Disney film Frozen, Elsa abandoned caution and prudence, giving up her good-girl persona to unleash her cold fury on the town of Arendelle. Her actions negatively affected everyone and everything around her. In our flesh, we’re tempted to unleash our pent-up, frozen fury on our friend rather than trust our Lord. Wisdom does not “let it go” like an ice queen. Instead, it dies to self, showing constraint and turning the hurt over to Jesus, who most identifies with us in our pain and who meets us in our times of need.
You would only walk in love to the extent to which you live the life of the scriptures you have come to appreciate in Christ in Jesus.

Take for instance if you have not been overwhelmed with scriptures so as to know that Christ did it all to the extent of dying for us on the cross of calvary you may not appreciate the extent to which we should forgive.Christ says we should forgive others just exactly as he did for us. You can never know the extent to which you would go to forgive some wrongs against you unless you appreciate through the lens of scripture the extent to which Jesus did.
It's a matter of choice, choose to forgive your offender and you would not just heal a broken heart but this would have ripple effect on other people's lives. Do not event try to harbor grudge in your heart because it would lead to greater sins and would amount to your health deteriorating.

Comfort in tribulations

Are you a Christian but you face cerrtain challenges that seem insurmountable nad heart breaking to you you are not the only one in this game of affliction for looking at the life of a number of Christians even in scriptures you would find the same things.
 
3Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, 4who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. 5For just as the sufferings of Christ overflow to us, so also through Christ our comfort overflows.…2 Corrinthians 1:4

Paul speaks of a “thorn in the flesh” in 2 Corinthians 12:7. He calls it “a messenger of Satan” that had a purpose of “torment.” Many explanations have been put forward, but whether Paul is referring to a physical, spiritual, or emotional affliction—or something else entirely—has never been answered with satisfaction. Since he was not talking of a literal thorn, he must have been speaking metaphorically. Some of the more popular theories of the thorn’s interpretation include temptation, a chronic eye problem, malaria, migraines, epilepsy, and a speech disability. Some even say that the thorn refers to a person, such as Alexander the coppersmith, who did Paul “a great deal of harm” (2 Timothy 4:14). No one can say for sure what Paul’s thorn in the flesh was, but it was a source of real pain in the apostle’s life.

Paul clues us in concerning the thorn’s purpose: “To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations.” So, God’s goal in allowing the thorn in the flesh was to keep Paul humble. Anyone who had encountered Jesus and was commissioned personally by Him (Acts 9:2-8) would, in his natural state, become “puffed up.” Add to that the fact that Paul was moved by the Holy Spirit to write much of the New Testament, and it is easy to see how Paul could become “haughty” (KJV) or “exalted above measure” (NKJV) or “too proud” (NCV).

Paul also says that the affliction came from or by a “messenger of Satan.” Just as God allowed Satan to torment Job (Job 1:1-12), God allowed Satan to torment Paul for God’s own good purpose.

No one likes to live in pain. Paul sought the Lord three times to remove this source of pain from him (2 Corinthians 12:8). He probably had many good reasons why he should be pain-free: he could have a more effective ministry; he could reach more people with the gospel; he could glorify God even more! But the Lord was more concerned with building Paul’s character and preventing pride. Instead of removing the problem, whatever it was, God gave Paul more overwhelming grace and more compensating strength.  We aul learned that God’s “power is made perfect in weakness”

The mind of Christ.

How do you see into your mind to establish this point. It is a consciousness of your spirit that exists. 

Dominant in your mind are works that have been your predominant activities sometimes which are influenced by whatsoever you listen to everyday of your life. It is a predominant thought of the mind that forms part of our memory and sometimes involuntary activities.

It is often said that, ''the garbage you input is the garbage you would get as your output''. No matter how I wish to over flog this concept, it seem to rapidly leave the mind as we proceed with our daily lives and our activities override this thought that someday we would reap what we have sown into our minds as thoughts. ''Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life''.(Romans 6: 8)

A lot of people who want to make a mark in their chosen careers for instance and do not want to be tagged a mediocre in whatsoever activity they want to do, to the least activity like making tea.Hard as we want to get the results we only seem fall short of this because our inputs are wrong. We want it so badly we can't leave that penny to invest into getting better results.

Come to think of it, our daily lives cannot be said to amount to any thing short of what we have invested. It can only be superfluously abundant life we would reap when you invest into spiritual things; like coming to terms with what you have come to know through the scriptures.
What could be the wisdom of this world as compared to God's?
Don't in your wildest dreams afford to play away your eternity on the platform of man made entities like silver and gold which have not profited those that have been occupied therewith.(1Peter 1:18)