«A foolish son is the ruin of his father, and the contentions of a wife are a continual dripping» (Proverbs 19:13).
Friendship
Paola grew up in a Christian home. She attended church and youth activities every Sabbath. Likewise, she completed her elementary and high school education at a local Adventist school. Afterward, she decided to obtain her bachelor’s degree at a prestigious public college. However, she didn’t choose her friends well. Her new friends approached her with smiles and jokes. She felt accepted by them. A little while later she began to spend more and more time in that kind of environment. She soon changed the way she dressed and became more aggressive toward her parents. Then, she stopped attending classes and frequently went to parties, tried alcohol, drugs and sex. Her parents were alarmed. The young lady had radically changed. Her life would never be the same.
It’s very painful for me to hear these kinds of stories. But they happen. Life can change in just one night of youthful abandonment, and then nothing is ever the same. Look at what Ellen White says, «A little time spent in sowing your wild oats, dear young friends, will produce a crop that will embitter your whole life; an hour of thoughtlessness, once yielding to temptation, may turn the whole current of your life in the wrong direction»—Maranatha, p. 82.
Everything starts with one wrong choice of friends. It’s actually something too serious to neglect. It could cost you your life! The truth is you could meet all kinds of people in school, in your neighborhood or online, including those that could get you in serious trouble. It’s best not to misbehave, much less to please people who aren’t truly interested in your friendship. They only want to take advantage of you. And when they invite you to do so, it’s best to avoid their company.
The life we have in this world is very precious time paid for by Jesus on the cross. We can’t waste it on unkind people. You might have a friend you really like who has problems with addictions or delinquency. In that case, your positive influence can be of great value in their life. You can be the support they need, and it would be best if you encourage them to get professional and spiritual help.
Remember today that every personal decision has eternal consequences.