AM: July 22, 2019

Today is National Rat Catchers Day…which seems really weird. Yes, we celebrate people whose job it is to catch pests, but it’s more celebrating the story of the Pied Piper. If you don’t know the story, a town had a rat problem, they hired the Pied Piper, who came, played a song which the rats couldn’t resist on his flute and the rats followed him out of town. The people wouldn’t pay him, so the Piper played another tune, this time which attracted the children, and the Piper disappeared out of town with all the kids following him… and they never returned.

That story has all sorts of problems (one that I wonder is why didn’t the adults just follow behind them until he stopped playing???) , but the idea of being tempted to follow along is a real one. Sometimes our friends do things that we know are not good, maybe using bad words, maybe not listening to their parents, maybe trying something like vaping–it’s hard to do your own thing sometimes when it seems like everyone else is going a different way.

Be strong. Remember that it’s not everyone who’s doing it, and if they are doing something that would harm you, ruin your relationship with your parents, or make you sin against God–it’s not worth it. Be strong.

Don’t be fooled: “Bad friends will ruin good habits.”

1 Corinthians 15:33 (ERV)

Dear Lord, Stay close to me as I grow older and as I start making decisions. Help my friends to learn more about you too. Help me to stay strong and do what’s right, whenever I can. Amen.