Don't Stand Too Close

Have you ever been told to stand back or you might get splashed? You stand too close to the curb and a car cuts the corner a little too sharply, hits a puddle, and splashes filthy water over your spic and span white shoes. You stand too close to the stove where there is meat frying, and the grease from the frying pan spatters your nice crisp blouse.

These are just a few of the things that can happen to us when we stand too close to physical things like grease, dirty water, mud, or smoke from the exhaust pipe of a car. But we can get pretty badly splashed with ideas and bad company, too.

Tom ran with a gang that had a bad name. When they got hauled into juvenile court for stealing hub caps, Tom was dragged along even though he had had no part in the theft. But he was under suspicion because he had been seen with the gang.

Trudy's bunch at school loved to start some wild tale about someone and then wait to see what would happen. Trudy didn't approve of telling lies, but she would innocently help to spread a falsehood that her friends had started.

As Christians we can't dig a hole and crawl into it to keep out of trouble. We have to live in this world twenty-four hours a day. But we are required to stop whatever evil we can. If we cannot stop it, then we must separate ourselves from it. It is natural for people to act like the persons they are with. And, right or wrong, we are often known by the company we keep.

I want to be your friend, 0 Father of Jesus.