Walk with the wise and become wise; associate with fools and get in trouble.

 Psalm 13:20

The things that turn our hearts away from God are usually not big events. We don’t worship Him one day, and wake up the next day deciding to leave this whole faith thing behind. It’s most often a gradual slowing, a drifting away. The passion for God that once flowed freely gradually slows down to more of a trickle. When we aren’t deliberate about the time we spend with God, filling our hearts with His Word, our hearts begin to turn. When we aren’t careful and selective about the people with whom we spend the most time, and the activities we choose to fill our days, our faith slows even more, eventually drying up altogether. 

The enemy often uses people to distract us, to try to get us to question the truth of the Gospel. He will fill our lives with as many fools as possible in an attempt to turn our hearts to his team. He will plant people in our lives that will make us question our Creator, our salvation, and even Jesus’ very existence. The enemy will make us feel increasingly uncomfortable for going against what is popular, where God has called us to be set apart. And he will make the fools around us seem wise. How will we know who are the fools and who are the wise? We just need to go to the Source and stay close! 

The people you choose to surround yourself with matter to Jesus. They impact your desires, your habits, and your thinking. And when they impact your thinking, they influence your heart and the path you will take in life. They can encourage you to live a life of love and faith, but they can also pull you away from God and lead you to a foolish life. If you want to be wise, be sure those around you are wise. Do they understand the true Source of wisdom and encourage you in your faith? Not everyone in your present should to make it into your future. You may need to make some choices. Choose poorly, become a fool; choose wisely and become wise. You are loved!