Proverbs 27-29

July 15

Proverbs 27-29

"As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another." (Proverbs 27:17, NIV) 

We need each other. No person is an island. For iron to sharpen iron there has to be friction. We are not good at holding one another accountable. Often we do not want others holding us accountable. It is difficult to be open and honest. To be vulnerable is difficult. We know that once we reveal who we really are, people can hurt us. We give them the weapons that could destroy us emotionally. But we also open up the way for us to become fully the people God created us to become. We need to surround ourselves with people who will lift us up when we are down, will bring us down when we get too high on ourselves and will hold us accountable for our words and actions.

We cannot open ourselves to everyone in this manner, but we need a circle of friends we can trust; people who have our best interest in mind. We need people who will sharpen us spiritually. We need people who can ask us about our devotions, our bible reading, our actions, and our witness to others. When we know we are going to be asked tough questions each week, we check our actions before we move.

We may have to lick our wounds when people speak to us honestly but as the writer of proverbs shares; "Wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy multiplies kisses." (Proverbs 27:6, NIV) Just because someone tells us what we want to hear, does not mean they are our friend and just because someone does not tell us what we want to hear, does not mean they are our enemy. We need friends who can tell us the truth about what they see in our lives. Such friends are more valuable than silver or gold.