“Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm.” ~Proverbs 13:20

“Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm.” ~Proverbs 13:20

For the most past, our environment determines who we are - over the past couple of years, I've seen many posts about surrounding yourself with positive people if you want to avoid negativity. Makes sense. My 4th grade teacher would always say, "Birds of a feather flock together" - we heard it so often that it stuck in my head well into adulthood. She wanted us to be wise in choosing our friends.

But all these things seem to focus just on avoiding the bad.  Let's train our minds to aim for the good! How do we do that?

We can know God, who is the ultimate Good, by studying His Word, the Bible.  The more we know Him, the more we become like Him. One of my favorite verses advises us to memorize scripture.

“I have hidden Your Word in my heart, that I might not sin against You.” ~Psalm 119:11 

I recall one time I was so so angry at someone I loved.  I was on my way home from work and would see that person in about 30 minutes.  I was literally boiling with rage.  I knew I had to calm down - I started singing Amazing Grace out loud in the car - it didn't help, so I started reciting any Bible verse I could remember - God didn't care that I mixed up the 23rd Psalm with the Lord's Prayer and threw in a parable here and there, because Psalm 119:11 is solid gold.  My anger dissipated - literally melted away.  I could then be reasonable and not play the wounded martyr. 

Memorize scripture - it's a win win!

Written by: Bonnie Chovanec, 2026