Hang around the RIGHT people! A Message from Joel Osteen

What you're unwilling to walk away from is where you stop growing...if you wont separate yourself from negative relationships, you wont soar any higher. A blessing is always attached to obedience. People get stuck because they stay with people, that bring out the worst in them. They saw the red flags years ago, but didn't do anything about it. You're going to become like the people you associate with, you can't become an eagle when you're hanging out with chickens. Whatever qualities your friends have whether good or bad, will eventually be your qualities too, this is why it's so important that you are selective about who you spend your time with. You can be kind and friendly to them (the negative ones) but don't spend time with them. The longer I live, the more determined I am to not spend time with people who complain and are negative, people who choose worthless companions bring shame to their parents. You are better than that! You may be lonely for a season, but soon an eagle will come into your life. What if you hurt their feelings? I say, what if you miss your DESTINY? We associate with people the way we see our selves. Gossips gravitate to gossips...victorious people associate with victorious people, successful people associate with other successful people...birds of a feather flock together. As iron sharpens iron, a friend sharpens a friend. Your friends should be making you better! Sometimes you outgrow friends, you have to recognize when their part of your story is over. Sometimes people will try to keep you in a box. Everybody cannot go where you are going! The higher you go the tighter your circle must become! Letting go of people who are not supposed to be in our life, is one of the hardest things we must do. There are friends and family members who cannot go where you're going, sometimes you have to distance yourself from them. You can avoid a lot of trouble if you just have the courage to leave who you are supposed to leave. How many times are we hanging around someone that we know is not good for us? Later on there will be trouble and conflict... but not if we make the right choices today. If youre always giving and never receiving, that's an unhealthy relationship. If you're going to reach your highest potential you have to surround yourself with eagles, with people who bring out your wings ~ people who bring out the best in you...but if you're holding on to the chickens you're never going to meet them. I read once where Henry Ford, Thomas Edison and Harry Firestone had summer homes next to each other in Florida...notice they didn't just associate with anyone, they associated with other dreamers and people of vision who helped them soar to new heights. Life it too short to spend your time hanging around the wrong people! (Paraphrase Joel Osteen Right People Sermon) Lisa Ekanger