"Let your foot rarely be in your
neighbor’s house, or he will become weary of you and hate you" (Proverbs
25:17)
Peterson paraphrases it this way:
"And when you find a friend, don't outwear your welcome; show up at all
hours and he'll soon get fed up."
Many a promising friendship has been
thwarted because one party overdoes it. Or, perhaps both parties. Familiarity
breeds contempt. God, in His deep and wise ways warns us about the possibility
of such hurtful experiences. When Ralph Waldo Emerson said, "The only way
to have a friend is to be one" he spoke truly but failed to warn us about
overdoing a pursuit thereof.
So, we are cautioned about being too
gun-ho or eagerly aggressive in making friends. Insecure people often make this
mistake: too eager, too needy. Lonely people may likewise overdo it. Our
approach to friendship needs to be delightfully measured with breathing space
allotted.
Face Book? Another paraphrase: And
when you find your friends on Face Book, don't outwear your welcome by copying
and posting too often; show up every time your friends bring up FB and you'll
soon get 'unfollowed' or 'unfriended.'
Thus endeth today's practical
proverbial pondering 😀.
Dr. Dick Christen
Dr. Dick Christen
