*SHALOM* *EVENING DOSE* *🎈PRUNING IN FRIENDSHIPS – WHEN CUTTING OFF IS NECESSARY* Good friendships are like gardens—they need care, attention, and sometimes... pruning! 🌿✂️ Have you ever looked at your circle of friends and wondered, What am I still doing with some of these people? If yes, congratulations! You are one step closer to the wisdom of today's first reading from Ecclesiasticus 6:5-17. This Scripture drops pure gems about friendship. It teaches us that not everyone who smiles at you is your friend. Some people will eat with you, laugh with you, even post you on their status with captions like "Bestie wa ukweli" — but when storms come, they will disappear faster than free Wi-Fi! *✍️Friendship is Like a Tree 🌳* A tree may look full and healthy with many branches, but not every branch is productive. Some branches only suck life out of the tree without bearing fruit. That's why pruning is necessary—to cut off what is draining life without adding value. God wants us to prune our friendships too. Ecclesiasticus says: "Let those who are friendly to you be many, but your advisers one in a thousand." (Sirach 6:6) Not everyone in your contact list is meant to have access to your heart. Some are just passers-by, not destiny companions. *Test Before You Trust 🔥* The Bible says: "A friend is tested in times of trouble." (Sirach 6:7) Let's be honest—it's easy to call someone a friend when everything is sweet. But wait until your life becomes a hot frying pan, that's when you'll know who is a friend and who is just there for the benefits. A true friend will cry with you, pray with you, correct you, and even borrow money from you without paying back (just kidding... or maybe not 😂). *When to Prune ✂️* If a friendship: Constantly drains your energy Leads you away from God Gossips about you behind your back Only shows up when they need something Then it's time to pick up your spiritual scissors and prune! Jesus Himself had thousands following Him, but He only called 12 friends... and even among the 12, only 3 were His inner circle. What does that tell us? It's not about numbers, it's about loyalty. *✍️How to Prune Without Bitterness* 1. Pray before you prune. 2. Don't announce the pruning—just create space silently. 3. Forgive those you're cutting off, even if they don't apologize. 4. Replace fake friends with the Holy Spirit—the best friend ever! *Remember:* Pruning is not hatred—it's wisdom. Pruning is not rejection—it's self-care. Pruning is not bitterness—it's growth. *🛐 Prayer for Friendships* Lord, You are the friend who never leaves nor forsakes us. Teach me to choose my friends wisely. Prune every friendship that is not aligned with Your purpose for my life. Surround me with those who will push me closer to You, not away from You. Give me the grace to be a true friend to others—loyal, loving, and honest. May my circle be small but powerful—full of people who love You and challenge me to grow. Through Christ our Lord. Amen! *🌿 May God give you friends who prune you, not those who poison you!* *Have a blessed day, Pruned and Thriving! 🔥*