Hanging out

I read something this week from a blog by Dan Miller that reminded me of some sayings that I have heard many times before, but haven’t heard in awhile:

“You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.”  Jim Rohn

“Your income will be the average of your 10 closest friends.”

“Visit someone in prison and ask any inmate what kind of friends they had before their conviction.”

“Do not make friends with a hot-tempered person, do not associate with one easily angered, or you may learn their ways and get yourself ensnared.” Prov 22:24-25 (NIV)

I had long forgotten about these sayings, but it really got me to thinking again, especially since we just moved.  Leaving our community that we had spent several years in has put us in that situation again of connecting with folks here in our new city.  We have to find a new church, a place to exercise, a park to go to for fun, friendly neighbors (I hope!), all of those things we sometimes take for granted when they are all readily available and already established.

Forging friendships that are meaningful is not easy, especially for a Real Christian Businessman.  Men particularly seem to have it harder than Women (sorry ladies – overall this is true).  If you want to be good at playing basketball for example, even though you may have some natural talent, without focused effort and practice you will never reach your full potential. The same holds true for making and finding friendships that are significant.  You have to put forth a concentrated effort not only in finding good relationships but once they are found, you have to spend time constantly cultivate them.

I challenge you today to make wise choices in who you are spending your time with.  The relationship choices we make will impact us in many different ways.  Our family, our vocation, how we raise our children, how we treat our wife, how we view our job, how we view the world, even our relationship with our Creator is impacted by who we are spending our time with.

I am reevaluating this now myself as I have a somewhat clean slate when it comes to who I will establish friendships with.  I am also reminded that I need to continue to cultivate and appreciate the ones that have already been established, even if they are long distance.

How about for you, are there any relationships in your life right now that you may need to reevaluate?