A farmer loaded up his shotgun and slipped out along the fence to make it warm for the crows that were pulling up his corn.

The farmer had a very sociable parrot who, discovering the crows, flew over and joined them. The farmer saw the crows, but not the parrot. He fired among them and then climbed over the fence to see the execution done. There lay three dead crows and his pet parrot with ruffled feathers and a broken leg.

When the bird was taken home, the children asked: "What did it, Papa? Who hurt our pretty Polly?"

"Bad company! Bad company!" answered the parrot in solemn voice.

"Aye, that it was," said the father. "Polly was with those crows when I fired and received a shot intended for them. Remember the parrot’s fate. Beware of bad company."

Mom and Dad are concerned about who you run around with. The preacher gets down on you about the company you keep. Friends warn you that so-and-so is bad news. But surely, who you run around with won’t affect whether you’re bad or good – or will it? A study at the Illinois Mental Health Department concludes that the most significant factor in determining whether a person will become a delinquent is his or her peer group.

It’s amazing that statistics agree with Mom, Dad, the preacher and friends about bad company. What’s more amazing is the Bible warns of it as well. The apostle Paul wrote: 

"Do not be deceived, bad company corrupts good morals" 
(I Cor 15:33)

 Young people, don’t be deceived.