ATTITUDE (Part
1)
As the
Olympics wind down here in
First of
all, our attitude toward God is key. What is your attitude towards God? How do you see Him in your
life? John 14:6 says that Jesus "is the way, the truth and life, that no
one comes to the Father except through Him". That is a fundamental truth
to believing by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Our attitude towards that particular
truth is crucial to our attitude towards God. If we don't believe this
cornerstone fact of the Christian faith then it is very difficult to proceed
further in our attitude towards God. Believing by faith is the first and most
necessary ingredient.
John
Maxwell, a well know Christian author and motivational teacher, communicates to
a diversity of organizations about the area of attitude that we all need to be
looking at in our lives. Maxwell says; "What is attitude? When you hear
the word, what do you think about? I think of attitude as an inward feeling
expressed by outward behavior. People always project on the outside what they
feel on the inside. Some people try to mask their attitude, and they can fool
others for a while. But that cover up doesn't last long. Attitude always
wiggles its way out". Its like the four year old boy who was put into a
time out by his mother. "Sit in the chair until the timer goes off"
the mother said in frustration. The boy sat down, fearing greater punishment,
but said "okay Mommy. I'm sitting on the outside, but I'm standing up on
the inside". Our attitude colors every aspect of our lives. It has been
said its like the mind's paintbrush. It can paint in vibrant colors creating a
masterpiece or it can make everything look dark and dreary. When we become
believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, the Spirit of God indwells us upon
conversion. A new attitude is created based on our belief and trust in the
Living God and as God's spirit lives within us our attitude and sensitivity to
sin is alerted to reflect God's standard. The scriptures also state in 2
Corinthians 5:17 "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation;
the old has gone, the new has come". Many characters in the bible showed that change of
attitude, such as Mary Magdalene, Zacchaeus, the apostle Paul and the list goes
on. The primary thing we discover though is that we still can have overtones of
our sinful nature affect us.
Often we
will ask the question Where did I get my attitude from? In the next installment we will
discuss this and bridge it into our relationship to God and how we view life in
general. I wish to leave you though with this quotation though on how important
and pervasive our attitude is.
It is the
vanguard of your true self.
Its root
is inward but its fruit is outward.
It is
your best friend or worst enemy.
It is
more honest and consistent about you than your words.
It is
your outward look based on your past experiences.
It is
what draws people to you or repels them.
It is
never content until it is expressed.
It is the
librarian of your past.
It is the
speaker of your present.
It is the
prophet of your future.
By: Pastor
David Jones