hello everyone welcome to this week's follow him favorites if you've been following this year you know that John and I take a single question from this week's lesson 2 uses our fallen favorite this week we are in the Book of Judges the question this week is about Samson and how important it is to date while to marry well to surround yourself with good influences does it matter who my friends are and who I date and who I marry how much does it matter I think the story of Samson can answer that dramatically don't you John it's a tough one to talk to kids about taking a hard look and saying do I need to change my friends I love that word that you use tank that influences and you know the example I like cheese food teenagers is driving cuz they're all very excited about getting the driver's license and stuff if you're in somebody else's car
 you're going where they're going are you an influencer or are you influenced and president M Russell Ballard said once we must influence more than we are influenced really requires a bit of honesty to say what are my friends doing to me or they taking me where I want to or we all helping each other get where we want if my friends driving the car it's it's okay cuz we both want to go to a good place or not so it's a great question do I influence or am I influenced excellent yeah there's only that I know of three people in scripture who had their birth announced by an Angel two of them are well-known John the Baptist and Jesus the third is Samson it's Samson nobody could take him out right when I ask Noe to pick him out why what happened I think Samson's major downfall comes early in his life when he says I want to marry someone who is not of my face and his parents try to say is there
 is there someone of our faith you could marry and he decides no I'm not going to do that end and then things kind of just keep spiraling there with the people that because of this marriage the people he's surrounded by bring about his his downfall so it does matter who you are surrounded by who you date and who you marry we would love to say oh no it doesn't matter if life will be the same no matter what and by the way when you do switch friends or switch you know when you decide to end a relationship or not saying those people are evil you don't have to go through your friend group and goatee less guilty last July outer Darkness T last job you don't have to do that you can just say look this situation is not good for me this circumstance it just does not work so I hope the Lord will take care of you I hope good things for you but I cannot stay here if you remember in the Book of Mormon there's this point where King Noah can do the right thing to remember this King Noah can do the right thing and let a Binet I go and he was a
 how to do it and he gets influenced his priests that his friends they push him to do the wrong thing how crucial it is John to surround yourself by people we're going to hold you up instead of trying to pull you down it's a righteous desire if you would like more influences good influences in your life pray for them I just think it's a good thing to pray for I have only father any friends and I need friends who will strengthen what I believe her influence me good ways and I will try to influence them and good ways and when I look at my own life and my children so one of the things I'm most grateful for is when I see they've got good friends because they seem to go in good past when they have good friends so we hope everybody listening take this seriously again you off to be judgmental some so often we make this about what you're judging my friend you're judging my boyfriend you're judging my girlfriend that's not what this is about this is you saying what is the best situation for me
 which I can live the gospel didn't you say John you love what Elder hale used to say about a friend Elder Robert dihale so this is going back he was actually I love this because he was a fighter pilot cuz I love airplanes in the talk that he gave was called return with honor because that was the model for his Squadron I guess but in that talk just give the best definition of a friend I think I've ever heard a friend is someone who makes it easier to live the Gospel of Jesus Christ and I think he went on a friend will never ask you to choose between his way and God's way he was is some really great advice friend makes it easier hankyoreh friend because you never asked me to do things that would take me and bad paths so we're friends because you make it easier for me to live the gospel by being around you and that's a great definition for friendship excellent absolutely excellent so take a look everyone listening take a serious look John and I are going to do it 24 going to
 serious look at the influences in our lives how influencing are we how influenced are we in see if we need to make a change there because we don't want to end up on the road to tragedy like Samson does it it says it's a very sad story where he just make some changes early on it could end up wonderfully so it can be a wonderful lesson for us if we want to end up in good places we got to make some two good decisions are we on John I had a good talk with my one of my son's the other day and I was getting a little bit nervous about some of the video games he was playing felt like they were getting a little edgy that he and I had a good chat about it I kind of left it at that and I got a text from him later and he said Hey Dad I think I'm going to delete all the scary and weird games they just don't bring a good feeling into my life I'm going to start playing more cheerful games that bring a brighter feeling into my life he says it might be hard but I really think that's what I need to do I prayed about it it's what needs to be done just a great little mo
 I meant as a dad where you're going that's wise right there and is a pair of Nike wanted to come down and say this is ending this is over here not going to do this anymore but I felt like let's trust the Lord the Lord will talk to him right the Lord will guide him so just a shout-out to my boy for for making a good decision on his influences it could be you heard president Nelson talked about social media is social media friend is the internet a friend are the movies I choose a friend are they making it easier for me to live the gospel and so looking at all the influences not just people that's a great way to to put it awesome well we hope you'll join us next week for follow him favorites come join us on our full podcast it's called follow him we are interviewing dr. Dana Pike and we're going through the Book of Judges this week I think you'll love it come on over and join us and make sure to join us next week for another follow him favorites