Intro Video to Lesson 3 here
Playlist on Spotify here
Newsboys, “We Believe”
Jesus Culture “Make Us One”
Rend Collective, “Build Your Kingdom Here”
Toby Mac, “Speak Life”
Building 429, “We Won’t Be Shaken”
Encouraging Scripture
Proverbs 13:20 Walk with the wise and become wise; associate with fools and get in trouble.
Proverbs 18:24 A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.
Proverbs 27:6 Wounds from a sincere friend are better than many kisses from an enemy.
Ecclesiastes 4:12 A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken.
1 Corinthians 13 (Full chapter on Love)
1 Corinthians 15:33 Don’t be fooled by those who say such things, for “bad company corrupts good character.”
Hebrews 10:24-25 Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.
1 Peter 4:8 Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins.
Resources
Articles:
John Maxwell “Law of Environment”
Alison Cook: “Setting Boundaries with Friends” Jordan Harbinger Show: “7 Signs It’s Time to Cut a Toxic Person”
Books:
Boundaries by Henry Cloud & John Townsend
Boundaries for Your Soul: How to Turn Your Overwhelming Thoughts and Feelings into Your Greatest Allies by Alison Cook & Kim Miller
When to Walk Away: Finding Freedom from Toxic People by Gary Thomas
Other Considerations
Creative Writing by Amy Burgin, Christgazer blog: “Rejoice, You Are Easily Molded” https://amyburgin.com/2020/09/05/rejoice-you-are-easily-molded/
More about relationships. As you become more aware of relationships in your life, you might wonder how to make better decisions in the future. Although this isn’t attributed to anyone in particular, this short list of “Five Ways Not to be Used” might be helpful as you think more analytically about relationships. You might set other guidelines as well.
- Believe patterns, not apologies.
- Don’t fall in love with potential.
- Believe red flags.
- Know your worth.
- Don’t lower your standards.
Environments.As you get better at pruning, other areas of your life can be evaluated. For example, do you listen to music? Most of us listen to music on our commutes, at our desks, on our phones… When it’s quiet, do you ever find yourself humming a catchy tune or singing the chorus that’s not playing in your environment at the moment? Songs can get stuck in our heads, right? Have you taken time to read the lyrics to the songs you find rolling through your mind? Are these the messages you want repeating and become part of your patterns? Like repetitive advertisements permeate our thoughts and impact our purchasing decisions, musical messages infiltrate our perspectives. These themes become incorporated into our lives as we believe the messages through emotion and/or repetition.
Consider all of your environments: Home, work, transportation, and so on. What is the climate in those areas? Besides music, are there other factors that can be positive, neutral, or detrimental to our well-being?