Don’t befriend angry people or associate with hot-tempered people, or you will learn to be like them and endanger your soul. Proverbs 22:24-25 (New Living Translation, NLT)

Watch who you hang out with. The people we spend time with will affect our attitudes and actions. The people we surround ourselves with, whether good or bad, can cause us to change.

Every single one of us is influenced in some way by whatever we are hearing and seeing. When we are around negative people, we are hearing negative comments, seeing their negative expressions, and we become like them. This is why it is important for us to be around those who will influence us for righteous living. God has told us not to be unequally yoked together with unbelievers, because spending time with the unrighteous prompts us to act and live the same way they do.

Even spending time with people who say they are Christians but do not have strong convictions that align with ours can be problematic. If we spend a lot of time with those who have weak convictions and do not have a level of the Word that promotes growth, our spiritual life can be compromised.

On the other hand, spending time with godly Christians who live right and speak in line with the Word of God will encourage us to do the same. As a matter of fact, I’d encourage you to find positive people who have a more developed faith walk than you or who have a greater knowledge of the Word. When we hang out with those who are further along than we are, it causes us to grow.

Please understand, I am not advocating that we never spend any time around sinners or those who are weaker in the faith. We have to reach the lost and we are called to help our weaker brothers and sisters grow in Christ. However, be sure to spend a good amount of time around those who will benefit you and your walk with the Lord.

There’s an old saying that says “Birds of a feather flock together,” meaning people hang out with others who are like them. However, I believe a better way to look at it would be “Birds who flock together become birds of a feather.” We become what we surround ourselves with, so let’s surround ourselves with good, strong believers.