Help! My Friend is doing bad stuff.

Have you ever had a friend that began making choices you didn’t like? Maybe they started using alcohol or drugs. Perhaps they got into porn or started becoming sexually active. It can be really hard to know what to do when someone you care about starts to make choices that you can see are wrong.

With those thoughts in mind, we’ve gotten a list together of some suggestions to help you when your friend starts doing bad stuff.

1. Speak into their life – If you have the ability to talk to this friend, do it. See if you can find out why they are making these choices. Don’t yell at them or give them a hard time because of what they’re doing, but be there to listen. Believe that when you talk to them, God will show you something to say that will encourage them to make the right choices. Finally, be careful when you talk to them to not come across as mean or seem like you know it all. Be genuinely interested in what they’re going through and believe that God will use you to encourage them and remind them of the truth.
2. Pray for them – This can be such a hard thing to do. Many times you want to see instant results. You want your friend to stop what they’re doing and start living right. However, sometimes the best thing you can do for a friend is to pray for them. A great place to start is to pray the prayer that Paul prayed in
   Ephesians 1:17-18 (Message) – “Ask the God of our Master, Jesus Christ, the God of glory – to make you intelligent and discerning in knowing him personally, your eyes focused and clear, so that you can see exactly what it is he is calling you to do…”
   Pray that they will be able to see clearly what they are doing and the plan God has for their life.
3. Always love them – Sometimes when friends make bad choices they don’t act very kindly to you. They might lash out at you or stop hanging out with you. It doesn’t matter how badly they treat you, you should love them.
   1 Cor 13:7 – “Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance” NLT
   Never give up on friends when they’re making bad choices, instead choose to love them and be there for them no matter how they treat you.

Dealing with a friend who is making bad choices is hard. But with God’s help, you can be a support and help for your friends that are in need. You can love them, pray for them, and even talk to them to encourage them. Regardless if you see results or not, Its important that you choose to love your friend no matter how they treat you in return.

Pray: God, I come to you in the name of Jesus and I pray for my friend. I ask you to open the eyes of their hearts that they might see who you are and how much you love them more clearly. I ask you to help me with wisdom so I know what I should do in this situation and how to help my friend. I believe that you are showing me the right thing to do right now in the name of Jesus, Amen.

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