Your company

(1Sa 10:10)  And when they came thither to the hill, behold, a company of prophets met him; and the Spirit of God came upon him, and he prophesied among them. (1Sa 10:11)  And it came to pass, when all that knew him beforetime saw that, behold, he prophesied among the prophets, then the people said one to another, What is this that is come unto the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets?

The company you keep affects you in many ways, including your spiritual life. If you hang with the eagles, you are most likely an eagle, and you, too, will fly. If you hang with the prophets, you will also prophesy. This is what happened to Saul. He started prophesying, and people thought he was a prophet. It is called anointing by association. It does not matter whether you do not know how to pray, deliver healing, preach, or even teach; hang around those who do, and their anointing will rub off on you. 

I remember a time when I was still studying. For some reason, all my friends were performing well in class, and this helped improve my grades. And I know some who had the potential to perform well, but their company affected them. Instead of discussing educational content, they were discussing relationships, current events, football, etc. Then some were known for cracking jokes. Every time they met, they talked about the new joke they discovered. Now, there are stages of development of every man, like the adolescent stage, which affects everyone. But if the stage takes hold of you and you do not keep the right company, you will be gone. Sometimes I do meet my former schoolmates who took the wrong path and ended up in drugs, yet they were brilliant in class. I was ever with the brilliant ones who were God fearing, ever in Scripture Union at lunch time, and this kept us focused. I cannot forget one of my friends who helped me relate to the opposite sex well. I am sure others were advising each other to find a way to sleep with them. On the contrary, my friend advised me to deal with them as sisters. Time has passed by, and although we are not so in touch, I find out via social media that so and so is serving in this or that ministry, and when you meet them, they are also doing well professionally.

My main point is, what is your company? Teachers have teachers' associations, doctors, engineers, etc. How about you? Which association can we ascribe you to? Even in the church, we have many departments and ministries, which one are you part of? Do not think you will be self-made. As God desires to shape you into a man or woman of God, He expects you to draw a line about your close associates. otherwise, the prophecies upon your life will never be fulfilled. The church invests a lot in its members every now and then, but that investment is wasted when the members themselves do not like to associate with the right people. 

You should have a pastor who is your friend; very soon, you will become one. If you have a pastor's wife as your close friend, you will become a pastor's wife soon. I have no time to talk about worshippers, apostles, prophets, teachers, etc. You want to get married, do you have a couple whose marriage is working well you are close friends with? You may want to keep them in your circles because they will always point you to marriage and not to staying single all your life! If you associate with drunkards or smokers, sooner or later, you will smell like one or behave as one eventually. You need to hang out with the person you want to become. I know you want to think that Jesus was hanging around with prostitutes and tax collectors all the time. I do not think so. He was with them to influence them and not the other way round. And he had results because Mary Magdalene and Levi were prostitutes and Tax collectors, respectively, but were changed by His ministry. If you are not spiritually mature to influence them, you'd better minimise contact. 

There is an old proverb that says, "Tell me your company, and I will tell you what you are." You are the average of the five closest people, be it in finances, spirituality, etc. Watch your company.

Further scriptures

(Act 4:13)  Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marvelled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.