I was reminded this morning of a great scene in the move, "Remember The Titans" where two teammates are frustrated and angry at each other because the team is divided in their loyalty between the blacks and the whites. Both athletes have come to their boiling point and confront each other on their bad attitudes.
There are times in our lives when we are placed in difficult circumstances either by our own choices or by outside forces. These storms come into our lives to test our faith, strengthen our will, correct our direction and focus our vision. Our attitude is what makes the difference between these storms being life breakers and life changers.
The Apostle Paul instructs us in Colossians 3:2 to "Set your minds on what is above, not on what is on earth". The word "set" is an actual action we must take. We must "flip the switch" in our thinking from being a victim to being a victor, being reactive to proactive. When we look at ourselves we only bring attention to our lack of power and perspective to deal with our circumstances. This manifests itself in our lives as pity. I have always heard the two worst things about a pity party are that there is no food and no one shows up. The Psalmist tells us to look up! Look up to heaven to where our help comes from" (Psalm 121:1)
Paul practices what he preaches in Acts 16:23-26. Paul and Silas are placed in the darkest of prisons which were reserved for the most despicable offenders like murderers, rapists, thieves, etc. They were beaten by rods until their entire bodies writhed with pain. They were under the ever watchful eye of a jailer. In that moment, they would have had every "right" to doubt God, walk away from their mission of spreading the gospel and go back to their families to live a comfortable life. What did they do? They praised God! They sang hymns, prayed and continued to do in jail what God had called them to do, share the gospel! You see, the environment they were in made no difference in them being obedient to what God called them to do. Henry Blackaby puts it like this,
Like Paul, set your mind to an attitude of reliance upon God's power to get you through your storm. Chose praise over pity. Your attitude will have an impact on others!
The Apostle Paul instructs us in Colossians 3:2 to "Set your minds on what is above, not on what is on earth". The word "set" is an actual action we must take. We must "flip the switch" in our thinking from being a victim to being a victor, being reactive to proactive. When we look at ourselves we only bring attention to our lack of power and perspective to deal with our circumstances. This manifests itself in our lives as pity. I have always heard the two worst things about a pity party are that there is no food and no one shows up. The Psalmist tells us to look up! Look up to heaven to where our help comes from" (Psalm 121:1)
Paul practices what he preaches in Acts 16:23-26. Paul and Silas are placed in the darkest of prisons which were reserved for the most despicable offenders like murderers, rapists, thieves, etc. They were beaten by rods until their entire bodies writhed with pain. They were under the ever watchful eye of a jailer. In that moment, they would have had every "right" to doubt God, walk away from their mission of spreading the gospel and go back to their families to live a comfortable life. What did they do? They praised God! They sang hymns, prayed and continued to do in jail what God had called them to do, share the gospel! You see, the environment they were in made no difference in them being obedient to what God called them to do. Henry Blackaby puts it like this,
"You can't always choose your circumstances, but you can always choose your attitude about those circumstances"
Like Paul, set your mind to an attitude of reliance upon God's power to get you through your storm. Chose praise over pity. Your attitude will have an impact on others!
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