In The Ditch
IN THE DITCH
Read Psalm 26:3-12.
When Ryan’s mother picked him up at school, he would not look at her. She had come for him because he and some other boys had been caught smoking, and he was too ashamed to say anything.
Rain pelted the windshield as they rode in silence. When they started up the hill toward their house, the car slipped and skidded. The street was being repaired, and it was a mess! “Be careful, Mom,” Ryan exclaimed, “or we’ll wind up in the di—”
At that exact moment the car skidded again and slid into a ditch. Mom shifted gears and rocked the car, but it was hopeless. She rifled through her purse to call for roadside assistance. “Bad news,” she said with a sigh. “With all the excitement this afternoon, I forgot my cell phone. Nothing to do but walk home and call a tow truck.” So they trudged up the muddy hill.
When Dad got home that evening, Ryan did his best to keep Dad’s attention on the car. But the dreaded moment arrived when Dad asked what had happened at school. “I didn’t want to smoke,” Ryan said. “It’s just that I couldn’t let the other guys think I was a baby.”
Dad frowned. “I thought you just told me you didn’t like being on a slippery road,” he said.
Ryan looked at him, puzzled. “What’s that got to do with it?”
“Well,” said Dad, “when you spend a lot of time with the wrong crowd, it’s like being on a slippery road. And today you slid quite badly at school. You’re a Christian, yet you’ve chosen friends who pressure you into doing things that you know are wrong. With the right kind of friends, life would be a lot smoother.”
HOW ABOUT YOU?
Are you hanging out with the wrong crowd? If so, you could be headed for a lot of trouble. Choose close friends who will be a help, not a hindrance, in living for Christ.
TO MEMORIZE:
I hate the gatherings of those who do evil, and I refuse to join in with the wicked.
Psalm 26:5
CHOOSE THE RIGHT FRIENDS.
From the book
