A New Year's Consideration

Krissa Lox

Active Member
It's the time of year a lot of people start assessing what they've accomplished (or haven't) up till now, and what they would like to change or aspire to in the year to come. Often tempered with the realistic but depressing acknowledgement that such sentiments rarely get very far, because noble ambitions tend to quickly give way when they meet up at the crossroads of required sacrifice and sustained labor, or maybe involve costs we can't afford to pay or aren't within our sole authority to commit to given our other responsibilities in life to attend to, or maybe just aren't in alignment with other plans the Lord decides are more important for us in the coming future.

One bit of guidance I have found useful over the years, though, is the saying that people become the combined average of the five people they spend the most time with. While I wouldn't claim that to be 100% literally and universally true, I have found it to be a helpful reminder to remain mindful and intentional about what influencers we spend the most time with, and to make sure we stay grounded in God and in goodness to not get bogged down by lesser things.

Bible and prayer being primary, to keep "abiding in the vine" for Christ to remain our first and foremost influence. Fellowship with other Christians to keep each other edified and encouraged (so long as they are also serious about abiding in the vine, and not just trying to take the name and blessings of Christ without the responsibilities that go along with it). Seeking out well-grounded Christian authors or speakers who can provide more in-depth instruction for topics we have to personally deal with that may be beyond the scope and expertise of our fellowship circle.

But it doesn't have to be some kind of absolute, pre-specified plan where we will feel like we have failed if we don't make X number of friends or read Y number of books or memorize Z number of Bible verses. The important thing is to just try to maintain more exposure to good influences than bad (and understand the value of being a good influence to others even if we don't always see or feel it), which is something flexible enough to adapt around whatever else might come with the new year.
 
1 Corinthians 15:33 said:
Do not be deceived: “Evil company corrupts good habits.”

1 Corinthians 5:9-13 said:
I wrote to you in my epistle not to keep company with sexually immoral people. 10 Yet I certainly did not mean with the sexually immoral people of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. 11 But now I have written to you not to keep company with anyone named a brother, who is sexually immoral, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner—not even to eat with such a person.

12 For what have I to do with judging those also who are outside? Do you not judge those who are inside? 13 But those who are outside God judges. Therefore “put away from yourselves the evil person.”

:)
 
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