Changing Your Attitude

“Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you”. (I Thessalonians 5:18). This is one of many, many verses in Scripture that instructs us to give thanks, or be thankful. God knows that life is hard and dealing with life’s circumstances can deplete us of our energy as well as our kind attitudes, and that is why He gives so much instruction to help guide us through those tenacious times. There is nothing that touches our lives, that He has not already given a prescription to follow to help, in alleviating the pain and stresses that life brings us. So in our trying to maunder though those difficult times, let’s apply some practical lessons to change the way we look and deal with them and see for ourselves, how changing our views on them will change our entire outlook and drive us to a higher level, in living and walking through them. One of the reasons that we get so bent out of shape over our circumstances is because, it constitutes a change that may have to take place in us. A choice if you will, and this, can upset us. We get upset because, we do not like what we are confronted with and the answer to alleviate the problem may be, that change in our will or attitude will have to take place. You see, change is always connected to complaining; when the change goes against what we want to happen. It conflicts with our feeling of entitlement, for something. When we say things like, "I hate my job”, “I can't stand this house I live in”, “why can't I make more money”, “my spouse doesn't even try” or “I thought they were my friend?", you get the picture! Those feelings must be met with change and practice or you will stay in the rut of discouragement and gloom and doing so, very possibly will pull those around you down as well. We can change a bad attitude by choosing to change it, stretching ourselves to reach for something deeper within us, that is not always laying around on the surface of our expressions and attitudes.

As we do, we reap the benefits of our gratitude. What better time to start freshening up your thankful thinking, than the upcoming, Thanksgiving Holidays. As we do, our appreciation stimulates in us a sense of obligation. Not an externally imposed obligation, but a sense of obligation that arises naturally within us as we recognize how we have been supported and cared for and not only how we are should pay it back, but out of obedience to the Word of God. Your gratitude can be cultivated through your sincere self-reflection on having a choice. Our deepest sense of gratitude comes simply through grace, with the awareness that we have not earned it, nor do we deserve all that we've been given. The Lord gives grace to the humble and He can change us, if we will obey what He ask us to do, through our choices. Choose today, how you will respond to your life’s circumstances. Don’t wait for the trial to come, choose now what your plan will be and how you will respond. Learn to see your situations as God sees them and be very careful not to judge God by your own equations, of how and what you think about your circumstances, but always by what He has to say about them. Maybe today sweet Friend you are judging God because of what you think you know about Him and not what is the truth. Never equate the love of God for you, by what is happening in your life. But, know this: “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose”. Romans 8:28.

Loving on you today Sweet Friend,

Bren