READ FROM THE LABEL

There are two purple cans in my brother's wardrobe

Both tall and fat spray cannisters.

One is the popular insecticide, "Read A Dream"

The other is a spray starch that keeps his shirts stiff on his body even after a busy day.

But not long ago, he unconsciously opened up the insecticide and lavishly sprayed it on his shirt. He wanted a "strong" fabric shine. He landed the iron on the moist cloth immediately.

It was when he began to choke that he knew what he was doing!

What could have been worse?

The iron could have sparked and caught fire from the inflammable aerosol

But somehow, it didn't. He was just itching his throat, coughing, wringing his neck from all that inflammation happening within the rings of his trachea...and then he looked at the body of the can and read with forced patience!

Then it occurred to him.

Most people look alike in your life.

They're usually fine-scented, lovely folks, singing your praises, cheering you on, causing no trouble within your circle until you begin to use them for what you thought them to be, rather who they truly are to you.

This error in judgement happens when we impatiently assume that because someone is close to us, it means they can fit into every purpose we desire.

Their actions jolt us back to read the label they carry. Alas, they are not all-weather, all-season,all-purpose people!

Truth is, no one is. It is not every friend you should chat up about your financial needs. It isn't every friend that should know your marital struggles.

Some are best for ministry; others for mentorship. Some for business; others for banter.

When you ignore why people are in your life and you attempt to use them to fulfill every role you need them to; you'll learn like he did that one doesn't use insecticides as a spray starch. Or more laughably, one doesn't use a spray starch to chase insects away.

Read the labels on your friends. They are probably choking you and causing you discomfort because you are using them to fulfill purposes for which they don't natively bless you in.

BEFORE THE FRIENDSHIP GOES UP IN FLAMES; cough, itch, but HAVE A LOOK AGAIN. It might not be that a friend is bad. It just might be that you are expecting something different from a friendship designed to give you a good soothing in other functional ways.

JEMMY