MAIN TEXT: 1Cor.15:33.
MEMORY:
Do not be deceived: “Evil company corrupts good habits.”(1Cor.15:33)

The positive relationship mindset makes you to train your children to only allow friends and significant others to affect their lives positively. This mindset is reflected in the way you make them to know that relationship matters. Let them know that the people you relate with in life are some of the most important determinants of your destiny. Some of the teachings which may be useful at this stage are briefly discussed below:

Friends As Determinants Of Future Well-Being.
Let them know that friends have great potential to change their outlook on life and the way they respond to situations. They should therefore know and be able to practice the principle of separation due to destination; that is, if a friend is not going the same destination with you, it is better to separate from him so that you won’t end up at his own destination. If you have a friend that is not keen on making heaven, it is better you separate from him because you may end up going to hell with him.

Friends Should not erase who They are.
Let them know also that they should be real to themselves. They should not try to hide their identity while they are with friends because that can make them susceptible to being negatively influenced.

Every Friend Is Transient.
Let your children know that friends are transient in nature; none of them is permanent. However close a friend is to you, one day, the juncture of separation will come. The only permanent friend who will be with you throughout your life and even till eternity is Jesus Christ; it therefore becomes imperative to know him and continually be His friend.

Your Spouse Will Be Your Longest Serving Friend or Enemy.
This mindset will make you to teach your children that their spouse will be their longest serving friend or enemy. This will make them to be careful when time comes to decide on it. Let them know that on the average, they will spend at least two thirds of their entire lifetime with their life partner. If it is so then, they have to be careful of their choice of life partner. Consequently, the choice of whom to marry is one of the most important decisions they will have to make in life.

Your Friends Should Not Be Regarded As A Spare Tyre.
Most people make use of their friends the way they treat the spare tyre of their car. Hardly do you check the state of your spare tyre until you need it. You teach them that people that are useful to them should not just be called on when they are needed, there is need to check on their welfare once in a while, so that by the time they are needed, they may still be available.

Discussion Points.
• In what ways are we showing interest in, and monitoring the friends that our children are moving with?

PRAYER
Father, use me to help my children to be selective about the friends they keep so that they will not be negatively influenced in Jesus’ name.


QUOTABLE QUOTE
BE SELECTIVE ABOUT THE FRIENDS YOU KEEP BECAUSE THEY ARE SOME OF THE GREATEST DETERMINANTS OF YOUR DESTINY. – Dr. Mike Oluniyi

Please follow, share and like us: