The School of Friends

Finally! Out of school! You thought the day would never come! No more books, classes, teachers, lessons, learning— or is it?
Unfortunately (or not?), we are always learning. We often learn lessons in life, but a lot of things we learn in the school of friends. Your friends are teaching you every day and you are learning well. As you read this, you are probably thinking that I’ve lost it, but let me show you another verse about friends from Proverbs.
Proverbs 22:24-25 says, “Make no friendship with an angry man; and with a furious man thou shalt not go: lest thou learn his ways, and get a snare to thy soul.” See? What did I tell you? You are learning from your friends every day!
The verse specifically talks about some bad lessons you could learn from your friends. If you hang out with angry people, those who have bad tempers, guess what? You will become a person who is characterized by anger. If your friends swear and use dirty language, it won’t be long before those words start coming out of your mouth. If your friends are into drugs, alcohol, or ungodly music, you probably will become a user before long.
If your friends are sinful influences on your life, it won’t be long before you “learn their ways.” They will teach you lessons that you shouldn’t learn. Those sinful ways they have taught you will be a “snare to your soul.” They will harm your relationship with God, your parents, and your church.
In that way, your friends are like mirrors of your life. They have taught you to become like them. If you want to know what you look like, take a good hard look at your friends. You’ve been to their “school” and you’ve been learning their ways. Even though you’re out of school, remember that you’re still learning— from your friends!