Whom do you hang around with? Who is your squad? 

 

Unless you’re very intentional about broadening your circle, the people you keep closest will be the ones who reflect who you are and who you are going to be. In a sense, you are the average of the five people you hold as your closest friends. 

  

Do the people you spend time with pull you closer to Jesus or further away? 

   

The Christian faith is often described as a walk. Imagine that you lived in New Testament times and you had the chance to join either a group that was walking close to Jesus or another group that was walking away from Him. The group you choose – in Bible times or today – will either help you stay close to the Lord or pull you away from him. 

   

Mr. Blind in John 9 was exposed to negativity and condescension from the disciples. He didn’t have to sit there and take that. He could have gotten up and made his way home or to some other part of the city. But despite the prejudice and insensitivity, he decided to stay close enough to Jesus to receive what he needed. 

    

Have you ever encountered such negativity that you walked away from a blessing? Has someone’s discouragement ever caused you to back off from advocating for something you thought was important? What could be more of a no than negativity? 

But Mr. Blind shows us that we don’t have to miss out on a massive blessing just because negative people stand in the way.