3 Important things the Bible says about Friendship

3 Important things the Bible says about Friendship

One who has unreliable friends soon comes to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.

Proverbs 18:24 (NIV)

Do your friends point you to Jesus or away from him?  Can you genuinely say that you have at least one Godly friend?

 

One of the things that we women value is friendship. When something great happens in our lives, we always call up our friends to let them know the great news.  The same is true when something terrible happens to us.

 

 Friends help us to see life from a different perspective.  That’s why christians need to surround themselves with godly friends.  Friends who will not only be there in our good and bad times but will also point us back to Jesus Christ.

 

For us to choose the right friends, we need to understand what the Bible says about friendship.

 

So let’s get to it:

 

 

1) Walk with Wise Friends

Proverbs 13:20 says, if we walk with the wise, we will become wise.  But if we keep company with fools, we will become fools too. We need to be very careful about the people we call friends.  If our friends do foolish things, it is only a matter of time before we also do them.

 

So do not choose friends just for the sake of it.  Take time and ask God to give you the wisdom to choose friends who will help you become a better person.

 

2) Two a better than one

 

Some of us don’t find the idea of having friends very appealing. We prefer to keep to ourselves.  While doing that helps you avoid many problems that come with having people around you, it is not the best thing to do.  We were created for relationships, not just in marriage but also in friendship. 

 

Jesus called himself our friend. Meaning God values friendship just the way we humans do.

 

Your friends are going to come through for you in challenging seasons.   They will hold you up in prayer when all you want to do is quit.  When you feel low, a good friend will help you rise again and continue walking in faith. (Ecclesiastes 4:9)

 

You will be there for each other in good and bad times.

 

 

3) Gossip Separates Good Friends

Most friendships end because of gossip (Proverbs 16:28).  More especially for women.  We always want to know what is happening in other people’s lives. At times it not in bad faith, but even then, things may not go as expected.

 

When your friend shares with you a secret, let it remain a secret.  Don’t go telling other people about your friend. And avoid making friends with people who love to gossip. They will gossip about you to other people just the way they gossip about others with you.

 

Let us be like Jonathan, who watched out for David, his friend, even though his father was after David’s life. When someone comes to you with gossip about your friend, be wise in handling the situation.

 

All in all:

 

It is important to turn to God for help when choosing friends. Doing so will enable us to avoid a lot of problems that crop up because of wrong friendships.

 

A little leaven leavens the whole bread, so you need to be careful about your friends. And always strive to protect your friendship through prayer and proper communication.

How Being Involved in Church Can Be Good for Your Mental Health

How Being Involved in Church Can Be Good for Your Mental Health

And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

Hebrews 10:24-25

 

You already have a lot to deal with. Depression and anxiety are things you struggle with every day.  You just want to live in peace.  But what if serving or being involved in your Church community is an excellent way of dealing with mental health? What if God wants to use your story to help others in the church?

 

The truth is:

 

We are living in times when one can easily attend a church service at the comfort of their home.  This is great because we can continue to feed our souls with the word of God, especially in times when we cannot go to church. But this can also lead to neglect of the most important thing, and that is gathering together as believers. (Hebrews 10:25)

 

Now, living in separation, especially for those of us that are struggling with mental health issues, can be very tempting. After all, it seems most people don’t understand us, even those in the church community.

 

But here is the thing;

 

The enemy wants us to live in isolation so that he can continue to attack our minds with negative thoughts.

 

That’s why it is essential to belong to a church community.

 

How will being involved in your church community be good for your mental help?

 

Serving others Brings Joy and Peace

One of the ways that you can worship God is through serving.  Through it, you get to express gratitude to God for taking care of you, and this brings peace and joy in your heart.

 

Not just that, but when you surround yourself with other people, you get to see life from a different perspective. You get to hear other people’s testimonies, and this will help you to keep fighting the good fight of faith. (Proverbs 27:17)

 

Improves your Self Esteem

Being involved in a church community will help you to develop your spiritual gifts, and this will improve your self-esteem.  See, most times, we end up having thoughts of how we are not good enough and how we shall never amount to anything. But serving others and being involved in a church community will help you discover, nurture, and utilize your spiritual gifts in a way that glorifies God.

 

Helps us to Shift our Focus

One of the reasons why we struggle with depression is we focus on ourselves and not God.  We spend hours and hours thinking about how we are not good enough.  Serving and belonging to a community will help us shift our focus from self to God.  We will get to see the true nature of God and his grace towards us through others. This will leave us feeling confident. Serving also acts as a good distraction from our fears and anxieties.  (Ecclesiastes 4: 9-12)

 

All in all

 

God has called us to serve others, not just for their own good but also for our own.  Belonging to a community will help you learn about other people’s experiences.  You will be able to meet other people who struggle with mental health issues and learn how they deal with them.  Being around others will also help you to shift your focus from self to God.  Serving God and others will bring joy and peace in your heart.

The Power of Being Silent

The Power of Being Silent

He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations I will be exalted in the earth.”

Psalm 46:10 (NIV)

 

Do you know that most people struggle to be silent?

 

Being silent seems easy, but it is not.  With so many things running in our minds and the world, it is hard to quiet down our hearts and be still. But the thing is, being silent helps us to know who God is.

 

Silence is a biblical discipline that Christians need to practice. Our Lord made quiet times part of his life. There are times he would withdraw from the crowd and spend time alone.  Like him, we need to spare sometime in the day, week, or month and spend time in solitude.  (Mark 1:35)

 

The truth is:

 

Most of us fear silence because it puts us in a state where we have to deal with what is going on in our hearts or in other cases, it makes us seem weak. The Bible tells us that there is a time to keep silent and a time to speak.  We need to know when to speak and when to be quiet. 

Why being quiet is Powerful

Good for your well-being

Did you know that silence is good for your overall health?

 

Yes, silence will help lower your blood pressure and prevent heart attacks. God expects us to take good care of our bodies and what better way than through practising silence? Being quiet will also lead to soul healing as the deep hurts in your soul will be brought to the surface by the Holy Spirit so that God can heal you.

 

Helps us reassess our lives

Truth is,  it is difficult to assess your life if you are caught up with the noise of this world.  Silence will help you to spend time alone and access your life.  Now it may be difficult at first, but as time goes on, you will start to enjoy being silent.

 

Allows us to hear from God

There are different ways that God speaks to us; one of them is through the still small voice.  Silence will help you to be sensitive to the still small voice of God that is always counseling us. (1Kings 19:11-13)

 

When you spend time in silence to hear from God, the Holy Spirit refills your life with vitality.

Helps us to avoid conflict

Now, practicing silence will not help you in your relationship with God alone, it will also help you when dealing with conflict.

 

There will be times in life when people will get to your last nerve but remember you don’t have to fight all battles.  Our ego makes it hard for us to watch someone walk all over us, but it is better to keep quiet.

 

Turn to God in prayer and keep quiet when someone offends you. To the outside world, you may seem weak when you do that, but at the end of the day, you will have avoided a lot of issues. The word of God tells us to bless those who offend us and allow God to deal with them.

 

So let God deal with the person that is offending you by holding your peace and remaining silent. (Proverbs 17: 27-28)

 

All in all

 

Silence is the most powerful weapon for someone that wants to experience spiritual growth and avoid conflict.  By being silent, we open up doors for the Holy Spirit to counsel us and refill our lives with vitality.

4 Cheap, Fun Summer Activities You Can Do

If you’re like me, the first thing I think of when the summer comes is road trips, hotel stays, and a tight bank account. However, summer doesn’t have to break the bank. In fact, summer activities shouldn’t put a strain on your finances at all. With a little creativity, one can have a fantastic summer without spending too much money.

Let’s look at four awesome summer activities for all ages:

Budget-Friendly Summer Activities

  1. Drive-In Movies. The regular price for a drive-in movie is around seven dollars for adults, which already beats regular movie theater prices by half. Drive-in movies are great budget-friendly options because not only are the tickets cheaper, but you can bring your own snacks. Sometimes drive-in movie theaters even have free movie nights in the summer, and nothing is cheaper than free!
  2. Camping in your Backyard. Have you ever wanted to camp but also have your own certified-clean bathroom and easy access to all your favorite foods and drinks? Camping in the backyard is the way to go. It’s a perfect option for homebodies, people with young children, or people with pets. If you don’t have an outdoor tent, you can always get creative in the living room with pillows and blankets, instead.
  3. Picking fruit at an Orchard. Who doesn’t love fresh fruit in the summer? Picking fruit isn’t a completely free activity, but for a low admission cost and the cost of the fruit, you’ve got a rewarding summer afternoon activity. The best part is that you go home with pounds of fruit for eating, dessert-making, or canning.
  4. Free Museum Days. If you’re looking to get out of the hot, summer sun for a while, local museums could be the answer to your problems. Not only are they temperature controlled, but they’re educational and affordable. Most museums offer free admission days either weekly or once a month for people who are keeping budget in mind.

Having Budget-Friendly Fun

Whether you’re paying off debt, saving for a bigger trip, or simply have a lot of expenses, there’s nothing wrong with keeping your budget in mind when it comes to summer activities. What’s your favorite cheap summer activity?

3 Reasons Why You Need to Build Godly Friendships

3 Reasons Why You Need to Build Godly Friendships

One who has unreliable friends soon comes to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.

Proverbs 18:24 (NIV)

Can you honestly say you have genuine friends? Or are the people you chat with on social media the only friends you have in real life?

Well, relationships are very important, and all through the Bible, we are encouraged to build healthy relationships.

If you don’t have any godly friends know that is never too late to start building such relationships.

Will it be easy?

No, creating new friendships is very challenging, especially for adults. Friendships are built with time, and they need commitment. Care needs to be taken because some people pretend to be believers, but they are wolves in sheep clothing.

Ask God to help you choose the right friends. He is the only one who knows people’s hearts. (Proverbs 22:24-25)

If you are a Christian loner that is struggling with the idea of having friends, here are three reasons why you need to build godly relationships;

Source of Encouragement

Look, the Christian life is not easy.

There will good and bad times. We are in a war with a real enemy who wants to destroy us.

The right friends will build you up when you are down. Since they are going through the same struggles, they will be there to help you.

There will be moments when you will feel like giving up, but your godly friend will hold your hand and help you to stand firm in the word. (Ecclesiastes 4:9-10)

With a lot of negative stuff being shared in the media and online, one can become discouraged easily, especially when going through hard times. Friends will hold you and help you to pull through the bad times.

They will encourage you to stand firm in the word and continue in it.

Godly Counsel

There are times we don’t know what to do in certain situations. Other times we may know what to do but, we don’t know how to go about it, or we may need a push from people who love us. That is where good friends come in.

Good friends will give us godly counsel. (Proverbs 27:17)

They will not tell you things that you want to hear. Instead, they will ensure to give advice that is backed up by scripture.

Accountability

A godly friend will not be afraid of asking you tough questions. Since they care about you, they will want to ensure that you are doing the right thing.

They will not judge you for making mistakes but will help you to remain true to your faith because they also care about where you will spend eternity. (Galatians 2:11-14)

The right friends will help you to grow in your spiritual walk. You will have people that will help you pray, and when you mess up, they will be there to build you up and help you see that you are in the wrong path through scripture.

Finding the right friends that love God is not an easy thing but will God’s help and guidance from the Holy Spirit you will connect with the right people that will help you, and you will also help them.