Bad Company?

My last post addressed watching out for others by not dragging them down into your sin and I admitted that occasionally I could be guilty of that. I also have taken time in the past week to think about things in my life and where I am going. What do I truly want? Where am I willing to make sacrifices to achieve my goals? Well right now I really want to get to know people and start investing in the lives of those around me. I thought I was making a really good friend and then things fell apart for reasons beyond my control. I wish I could change things and I wish I could convey how I really feel but I know I messed up and I know I need to grow from it. I understand that patience is another thing I still need to work on and though it seems far away, I know that I can achieve it. I know that I need to sacrifice my personal comfort and wants in order to achieve my goals because everything within me tells me I should be somewhere else, chasing other things. I still believe God has me here for something more than baseball and school. I always think that I am beginning to find what that is and then it falls apart. Either I set myself back or someone else pushes me away from where I was going. Letting everything fall into place is very tough and I wish that I would allow it to happen more often. I do not let people influence my thinking but when people present things, I do question what I hear. Sometimes I do not know how to process the information and asking questions just makes it worse. I wish I had taken more time to assess the situation because I feel like I lost something great all because of selfishness and pride. I hope that I have not blown my only chance to enter this door because it seemed like God wanted me to at least take a look inside and see where it would take me. Perhaps I needed to learn a lesson first in regards to sin and temptation and that is where I was at last week. I tend to put myself in poor situations and I think I know why.

When I find myself in poor situations its because I usually disregarded what my senses were telling me and I try to manage it on my own. I need to question who I am with when I mess up or what I am letting influence me. If you think you are stronger than you are, you have too much pride and you will find yourself falling. There comes a time when you know where your strength comes from and that is when you find yourself successful in sticky situations. 1st Corinthians 15:33-34 states, "Do not be misled: 'Bad company corrupts good character.' Come back to your senses as you ought, and stop sinning; for there are some who are ignorant of God -- I say this to your shame." I need to figure out what I am doing with my time and how I am being influenced by those around me. My intentions may be good but if I am not in a situation that is for building me up then I am putting myself in harm's way. I wish it were all easier and I wish I was not stuck in between. I am finding out how to deal with things and try to eliminate drama as needed. I know that I have good morals and that I generally make good decisions but when I let myself fall into a trap then I feel like I have no way out and ultimately give in. I need to find a way to allow God to move through a situation rather than pushing him to the side. I know there is more that I can do but for now, what I am dealing with is out of my hands. I will just sit back and try to let God work. There might be some things that I can do but for the most part I have to just let it go. If the situation does not work out how I hope it does, then I guess I take it with a grain of salt and move on. Only God knows what will be and I must trust him to make the situation what I believe is right.

Please continue to pray for me. I have been lacking in prayer and try to remember everyone but my prayer time is not in the most efficient time slot and I find myself unable to finish what I started. Its time for me to grow and make some effective changes and please pray that I am able to take that step. If you have any requests please feel free to contact me and I will pray for you. Keep seeking him and never give up.

God Bless,

Joseph Robinson