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Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men. – Proverbs 4:14<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cAt fourteen, I started hanging out with a gang around my corner. It felt like a badge of honor to be seen with them. Then I started seeing guys disappear\u2014either killed by rivals or sent to prison\u2014but despite the warnings of my parents, I kept going back. It took one of the guys I idolized getting shot and none of the crew coming to visit him while he lay dying in the hospital to shake some sense into me. At that moment, I knew the gang didn\u2019t have my back, nor were they the powerful family I thought they were. Now twenty-three and no longer affiliated with the street life, I speak at community outreaches under the canopy of ‘Cutting Ties’ to encourage young people to resist the allure of gangs\u2014because when the chips are down, they won\u2019t be around.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n The opening narrative, though created for today\u2019s conversation, describes gang life and its false impression of power and stability.\u00a0 The same desire for security from external forces is found in 2 Chronicles 25:14, which describes Amaziah’s allure and downfall when he took objects from the defeated Edomites and began worshipping them. Amaziah\u2019s actions angered God, and a prophet was sent to Amaziah to reveal his disobediently impaired judgment: \u201cWhy hast thou sought after the gods of the people, which could not deliver their own people out of thine hand?\u201d (vs. 15).\u00a0<\/p>\n While it is wise to implement protective measures and forge relationships that add value, nothing or no one will ever offer the security that only God can guarantee.\u00a0 \u00a0Cutting ties with what isn\u2019t good for you is the best way to hold onto what\u2019s right for you.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men. – Proverbs 4:14\u00a0 \u201cAt fourteen, I started hanging out with a gang around my corner. It felt like a badge of honor to be seen with them. Then I started seeing guys disappear\u2014either killed by rivals or sent … <\/p>\n