“A good friend is a connection to life-a tie to the past, a road to the future, the key to sanity in a totally insane world, but Fake friends are like shadows always near you at your brightest moments but nowhere to be seen at your darkest hours”.
Friendship is a very special type of relationship between two or more people who share a bond of mutual affection, respect, and support. Friendships are based on trust, loyalty, and shared interests, and they can be incredibly enriching and fulfilling. Friends can come from all works of life, and they can be from different backgrounds, cultures, and ages. Friendships can take many forms, from casual acquaintances to close confidants.
A friend is a very special person, that gives you hearty counsels, someone who impacts your life and thats either positively or negatively, they slowly but surely affect who you are.
The famous quote “show me your friend and I will tell you who you are, can be seen in the lives of countless friends in scriptures, e.g David and Jonathan,Jesus and his disciples, Job and his friends e.t.c. We can see that the friendship of these people were tried,some failed while some lasted.
JER 38:22b- They lied to you and did you in, those so-called friends of yours; And now you’re stuck, about knee-deep in mud, and your “friends,” where are they now?’.
Annie, Eva and Sharon were three birds of a feather, or so Annie thought. Annie wasn’t the brightest one among the three,as a matter of fact, she joined the trio to get better at studies. But Eva and Sharon didn’t respect her boundaries, her feelings didn’t matter to them, when it’s time to study, they sideline her and let her study on her own even for topics she doesn’t understand. They were more concerned about their well-being and sometimes forget there is a third personality in the trio. One time Eva promised to teach Annie a topic on one of the most difficult courses, but at the agreed time, Annie only came to meet a note, saying she had to attend a party. On the long run, Annie had realized the relationship was one sided, their values had changed and she was feeling like the weak link. She decided to stop being friends with them,she felt betrayed,she almost failed the semester, but she later found a group of Christian friends who helped her through.But her friendship with Eva and Sharon was a lesson for her to make her an even better friend to someone else.
Are you Annie or are you Eva and Sharon? Know that true friends won’t posses any of these:
-Untrustworthiness : If they consistently break promises or betray your trust, it’s a red flag.
-One-sided care and attention: If the friendship feels unbalanced, with you giving more than receiving, it may be a sign of a bad friend.
-Negativity and drama: If they constantly bring negativity and drama into your life, it can be draining.
-Manipulation : Watch out for friends who manipulate or use you for their own gain.
-Lack of support: A bad friend won’t be there for you in times of need or won’t celebrate your successes.
-Disrespect : If they disrespect your boundaries, values, or feelings, it’s a warning sign.
-Consistent selfishness: Friends should care about your well-being, not just their own.
-Change in values : If your values and interests no longer align, the friendship may have run its course.
HOW TO SEPERATE FROM BAD FRIENDS
“It is said often that friendship is not by force but rather it’s a choice”, this means that since the power to choose lies soley in your hands, no one has any rights to force a friendship on you and vice versa. I choose to be your friend because of this and that, you rarely hear you must be my friend by all means ….
Now that friendship is a choice you can choose to walk away from any toxic friendship, one that constantly brings you pain and drains you, listen, everyone has their battles and struggles and pain and worries and we are all seeking solutions and someone we can rely on, but if the one you wanna rely on cannot be relied upon please walk away for your sanity sake.
Engage the force of prayer, for you to cut off from such people because it can be very hard and painful. And lastly decide to be a better friend yourself,decide that anyone who comes in contact with you always testifies of how much of a blessing you are or were to them not otherwise remember FRIENDSHIP IS A TWO-WAY THING, (YOU COULD BE THE TOXIC ONE TOO),TAKE A STEP BACK AND CHECK THROUGH.
MIMI'S CREATIVE MIND 