Lost in Translation

Norman Lear is the writer and producer of iconic TV shows “All in the Family,” “The Jeffersons,” “Good Times,” and “Maude.” He is credited for quoting “We are all versions of one another.”

Here’s an interesting question. If a stranger were to meet your friends (and inquire about you), what impression (or assumptions) would they make about your character (and you as a person) based on the information they gathered?

The following verses give valuable advice about making the right kind of friends.

1.  “Be friends with those who are wise, and you will become wise. Choose fools to be your friends, and you will have trouble.” (Proverbs 13:20, ERV)

2.    “Don’t be friends with people who become angry easily. Don’t stay around quick-tempered people. If you do, you may learn to be like them. Then you will have the same problems they do.” (Proverbs 22:24-25, ERV)

3.  “It’s better to have a partner than go it alone. Share the work, share the wealth. And if one falls down, the other helps, But if there’s no one to help, tough!” (Ecclesiastes 4:9-10, MSG)

4.  “Iron sharpens iron; so a man sharpens a friend’s character.”  (Proverbs 27:17, ISV)

5.  “Do not be deceived: “Bad company corrupts good morals.” (I Corinthians 15:33, MEV)

6.  “Perfume and incense make you feel good, and so does good advice from a friend.” (Proverbs 27: 9, ERV)

Whether your closest friendships are biological in nature (or through a variety of circumstances), you both have the opportunity to be a blessing or a curse to each other. (Which have you chosen so far?) Prayer is always a benefit to making any relationship better than it already is.

Maybe you are completely exhausted with the wrong character labels friends (family, and strangers) have put on you. Somehow, the real you got lost in the shuffle of life. Proverbs 12:26 (CEV) provides wisdom for your life as this post comes to an end. “You are better off to do right, than to lose your way by doing wrong.”