Surround Yourself With The Right Influence

Daily Devotional

2 Chronicles 24:2 And Joash did that which was right in the sight of the Lord all the days of Jehoiada the priest.

Most of us are familiar with the idea that the environment we live in affects the person we are, the characteristics we portray and the way that we behave as humans.

Have you ever considered that the people you keep around you could affect the path of your future and career? We all need family, friends and mentors in our lives, people we turn to for advice or solidarity when times are tough, the people we trust and are influenced by. However, have you ever stopped to think that maybe some of those influential people may actually be having a negative impact on your life, even subconsciously?

Five people around you are determining your success and they are people you allow to do so. It has been a recent hot topic among the business world that personal career success comes down to the people we place closest to us, our influential five. Motivational speaker Jim Rohn famously said that “we are the average of the five people we spend the most time with”. Some of the most influential and successful people in the world surround themselves with other driven, motivated, successful people that they trust, an insurance of positive guidance along their path in life.

The path that you walk depends on who you allow to influence your decisions. Joash had the right influencer, Jehoiada the priest, and so the first part of his reign as King was a great success. When Jehoiada died it went downhill from there. After Jehoiada’s death his choice of influencers was not based on their level of wisdom, but rather on the basis of who could massage his ego. The princes of Judah played on this weakness and gained influence causing him to make bad decisions. As a result, he lost honour and when he died they did not bury him in the sepulcher of the Kings.

Avoid the wrong influencer, choose mentors that will help you make great decisions.

Life Application: Choose God fearing mentors that have done what you are looking to do.

Prayer: Dear Lord, help me to choose the right people to surround myself with. Help me to identify those who have achieved the level of success I desire in different areas of my life. In Jesus name, amen.