Clean Up Your Camp ©

Associate yourself with men of good quality if you esteem your own reputation; for 'tis better to be alone than in bad company.

George Washington - Rules of Civility

“Be careful of the company that you keep……”

Wise words that I received from a dear friend and mentor from what seems to have been a lifetime ago. Unfortunately, despite all of the effort that has been given and strides we have made in leveling the playing field racially as well as economically, we still have those that wish to judge individuals by the number of zeros behind their annual salary, their bank account balance, or the still sadly the color of their skin. However, in the overall scheme of things these superficial measurements of character and credibility are truly insignificant.  Experience has truly taught me that you can never judge a book by its cover. The only way you can know whether or not the book is worth reading is to pick it up, check out the table of contents and maybe even turn a few pages. This analogy applies not only to books but to people as well. You can’t really judge people by their outer appearance. The true measurement of a person’s character and substance comes from taking the time out to  learn about that person. Where they are from, where they’ve been,  what their dreams and goals are, what drives them, what they stand for and what supreme authority  they answer to.  These are things that you just will not be able to determine by the clothes that they wear, the home that they live in, place where they are employed or the car that they drive.

For me personally, I judge people by three things. Do they keep their word? Do they mean what they say and say what they mean? Are their words lining up with their actions? All else simply does not mean a whole lot to me. There are a lot of people out there that are have been wounded. Wounded by those that have professed love to them, wounded by situations, wounded by past failures and disappointments, wounded by some of the very things that they placed their faith and trust in.

Thankfully with time,  wounds heal. However, the scars that remain serve as reminders of those things that have caused us pain or discomfort. No matter how ugly the scar, the lesson tied to that scar insures that we will think twice before placing ourselves in the situation that gave us the scar again. This I know about all too well.  What is your scar? That last relationship, that get rich quick scheme or hustle, that adulterous affair, that one night stand, that beat down you handed out or received because you did not exercise self control  and discipline (That was for you Mama Tia). Whatever that scar is, just know it’s never too late for a new beginning or an all but overdue ending. A dear friend told me just the other day that the pain that we experience daily is merely conditioning and preparation for your destiny. The Word of God alludes to this in the Book of Proverbs:

“Blows and wounds cleanse away evil, and beatings purge the inmost being.” Proverbs 20:30

It’s basically like the diamond from coal analogy. The greater one’s goal and purpose, the stronger the opposition. Nonetheless, because of the wounds we receive at the hands of this cold, cold world that we live in it can be easy for someone to lose sight of who they are and what their true purpose is. For example, bad relationships can make one bitter, constant disappointments can make one skeptical, lack of progress and development can render one hopeless. Nevertheless, those that know who they are and whose they are know that the end of a matter is better than its beginning, and patience is better than pride for all things truly do work together for the good of those that love Him and are called into His purpose.

This is exactly why it is so important for us to be extremely careful of who we surround ourselves with. Now I know what I said earlier in this passage about making character judgments but there is another side to that coin that needs to be discussed. The belief in people’s “potential”. That is a slippery slope primarily because the potential that you believe someone has doesn’t amount to anything if the individual doesn’t believe that they have the capability to live up to your potential. It may not even be something that the person wants for themselves. I come up on this situation a lot (Mostly among my female friends talking to me about their relationships). When we place our hope in people solely based upon their potential we set ourselves up for possible disappointment. This is why it is extremely important for us to be selective when labeling people our friends. We sometimes make the assumption that everyone that calls us their friend has our best interest at heart. This is simply not the case. Sometimes people have their own best interest at heart and what’s best for you is an afterthought.

 With that said,  it is high time that everyone one clean up their camp. By this I mean people need to make a sincere effort to surround themselves with positive and progressive people no matter your race, creed, color, or economic status. Rid yourself of negative people and associations. They stunt your growth and keep you from realizing your full potential (I am living witness to this… I just finished doing some purging and pruning myself.) For some of you this may prove extremely difficult at first but I promise you the payoff is tremendously satisfying. The amount of peace that you will have when the dust settles will more than outweigh the discomfort of the process. To be quite honest with you, if I had to choose between peace and popularity, I’d choose peace. Peace is priceless and you can never have too much of it. However, your associations, friendships, relationships and affiliations can either grant you an abundance of it or it can outright rob you of it. That’s why it is important to never take anything or anyone at face value. Do your research and read the fine print. Don’t be lazy because I promise you if you don’t do it going in, you’ll definitely wish you had coming out.

Clean up your camp. Now by all means if you are comfortable with where you are and with your current “situation” or “arrangement”, who am I to come in and upset the balance of things. However, I just ask you to think long term. Is your current situation a healthy one, a lasting one, a fruitful one, a blessed one. If you answered “no” to any of those questions then I strongly recommend that you consider cleaning up your camp. Change can be uncomfortable. Nonetheless, at times it’s essential to growth. Complacency is the number one enemy to self-discovery and the discovery of one’s purpose. It’s so easy to settle for a situation that makes us comfortable. However this mindset - albeit comfortable - can lead to a future of regrets and “shoulda, coulda, wouldas”.

Ask yourself this question:

When you look back over your life do you want the reason you did not fulfill your dreams, reach your goals, or discover your purpose the company that you kept? If you are sincerely honest with yourself I believe the answer would be an emphatic “no”! Clean up your camp. It may sound like a tremendous task but I bet that if you look back over your life you have had harder tasks. You have had to overcome much larger obstacles. I heard a quote recently from Counting Crows front man Adam Duritz that pretty much sums it all up:

“The decision to change in and of itself means nothing. It’s the work that follows that means everything.”

With that said, my hope is that you stay encouraged and know that almost everything that is worth anything has been obtained through some type of sacrifice. 


God honors effort. So roll up those sleeves and get to work.