GETTING YOUR ATTITUDE BACK ON TRACK
INTRODUCTION
A few days ago, I was sulking because some things didn’t go my way. I snapped at my wife. She graciously told me I needed to get my head on straight. My attitude toward everything soured because of one situation. In prayer, I had to let go of this thing (that was out of my control anyway) and trust God to work all things out for good.
How many parents have said to their kids, “Check your attitude?” Come on now, be honest! Attitudes, good or bad, are contagious. When they are good and positive, people accomplish so much. But when they are nasty or negative, the best plans fail.
Jesus has a lot to say about attitudes in Luke 6:20-49. These verses are one sermon that Jesus preached to His disciples and “the people.” This whole blog deals with our attitudes about four things:
Circumstances
People
Ourselves
God.
So, let’s ask ourselves, “What is my attitude about my circumstances?” If we deal with this one thing, our attitude toward people, ourselves, and God will also change.
OUR ATTITUDE TOWARD CIRCUMSTANCES
Looking at his disciples, he said: “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. Blessed are you who hunger now, for you will be satisfied. Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh. 22 Blessed are you when people hate you, when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil, because of the Son of Man. “Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. For that is how their ancestors treated the prophets. “But woe to you who are rich, for you have already received your comfort. Woe to you who are well fed now, for you will go hungry. Woe to you who laugh now, for you will mourn and weep. Woe to you when everyone speaks well of you, for that is how their ancestors treated the false prophets (Lk 6:20-26).
You know, folks, there is not a lot of difference between Jesus’ day and ours. People then have become convinced that happiness comes from having money, possession, or power. I mean, look around the world today. People have bought into the lie that everything would be okay if they could change their circumstances.
Think about it like this: if you are poor and a jerk, will money change that, or would it worsen it? More than likely, you will just become a rich jerk. Or, if you don’t manage the little God gives you, will having more change the way you steward God’s blessings? No. I have people tell me all the time, “Pastor, I’ll tithe when I earn enough money!” Others have said, “Pastor, I can’t give my tithe because I owe so much on this or that – but when I get it all paid off, I’ll support the church.” I usually shake my head and pray they keep their word.
Jesus is not teaching us that being rich is spiritual, nor is he telling us that being poor is spiritual. At least in my mind, the message of the Beatitudes is this: “what is your attitude toward your current circumstances?”
When you read the Beatitudes, you cannot just read the parts that say, “Blessed is….” You have to read the whole sermon. Each “Blessed are you…” in Luke 6:20-22 have a “Woe to you…” in Luke 6:24-25, let me draw this out for you….
(20) Blessed are you who are: poor/satisfied - (24) Woe to you who are rich / already received a reward.
(21) Blessed are you who hunger/be fed - (25) Woe to you are well fed / will go hungry.
(21b) Blessed are you who weep / will laugh - (25b) Woe to you who laugh / you will mourn & weep.
(22) Blessed are you when people hate you - (26) Woe to you when everyone speaks well of you.
It seems that Jesus is talking more about how we view our circumstances than how much we own or how much money we do or don’t have. Why? Because circumstances reveal our attitude of trust in God!
The “Blessed are you” verses challenge us to trust God for a future outcome. Look at Christ’s words again:
Blessed are you who hunger now, for you will be satisfied. Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh.
Do you hear the words: now and will be? Jesus is talking about a present reality: you are hungry now. But He also points us to a future truth: you will be satisfied.
Before we moved to Odessa, MO, to pastor a wonderful church, my family had struggled for two years. We chose to leave our former denomination because of doctrinal errors. I lost my income and most of my friends. I went from being known as a missionary and preacher to being an outcast. I went from making $60,000+ a year to $12,500 as a special education paraprofessional.
We were getting most of our food from food pantries and food stamps. We didn’t have beds for the first 3 or 4 months. We had just returned from 12 years of mission work in South Africa and were waiting on our shipping container to arrive in the USA. We were financially poor, and at times we were hungry. We learned a hundred different ways to eat Ramen noodles.
I look back on those days and realize there were times it would have been easy to give up. There were times when Satan whispered in my ear, “See, God is not with you! If He were with you, these things wouldn’t be happening. If He was on your side - BLAH, BLAH, BLAH!”
Day after day, I would look in the mirror and say, “God is with me. God is walking next to me. I may not see what He is doing or working out right now, but I trust in Him now. I may be weeping and wondering how things will work out, but I trust Him now. I knew someday I would laugh again, but for now, all I had was trust in a trustworthy God.
Now, look at the “Woe to you verses….”
Woe to you who are well fed now, for you will go hungry. Woe to you who laugh now, for you will mourn and weep.
Do you hear those words? Now! Will! But there is something different about the attitude of these verses. Is it wrong to be well-fed? Is it wrong to laugh? NO! So, what is Jesus teaching us through these verses? It is the same lesson as before: circumstances reveal our attitude of trust in God!
Instead of challenging us to trust God for the future, Jesus asks us if we trust our present circumstances more than God. Are we trusting what we own or possess or our abilities to supply our needs? Are we trusting in our reputation? Are we trusting in our power?
The temptation to trust in ourselves instead of God is potent. When we have nothing, and God helps us to have something, we can get the idea that somehow our hard work, ability, or whatever was the reason for the change in our circumstances.
Yes, we did work, but God gave us strength. Yes, we use our brains to make decisions, but God gave us the wisdom to act. Yes, we used our abilities – but who gave us those abilities?
You see, no matter the circumstances of life, God is asking us to put our trust in His wisdom, ability, power, and more. The opposite of trust is not distrust; it is pride.
The other day, I talked with a friend who told me about going through a recent storm. It blew some dead limbs out of the top of a tree. He expressed his thankfulness for God blowing those limbs out. He did not have the equipment to reach them, but God provided. Now, that is an attitude of gratitude.
So, what is your attitude toward the circumstances of your life?
HOW TO CHECK YOUR ATTITUDE
So, how do we react to good or bad circumstances in this life? When there are times of plenty and times of want – how do we keep trusting God?
I think the Apostle Paul gives us the answer in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18…
Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus (1 Thess 5:16-18).
REJOICE Always
Joy is not dependent on our circumstances; it’s about knowing God saved us and is with us. Joy knows that our greatest present possession is Jesus, and our greatest future hope is JESUS.
No matter the circumstances, we must CHOOSE to REJOICE that your name is written in Heaven!
PRAY Continually
Pray about the circumstances of life. Pray about your attitude toward those circumstances. Pray, pray, pray! Not just when things are going wrong. I have discovered that my attitude about something can make a quick 180 when I take it to the Lord. Slowly God opens my understanding to see what He is doing – prayer is the only way to keep my attitude straight.
Give Thanks in ALL Circumstances
The key word here is “all.” In Greek, it means all! The good, the bad, the in-between, the up, the down, and the mundane things of life: in all things, give thanks!
Being thankful helps us take our circumstances in stride. Being grateful allows us to recognize God as our faith’s author and finisher.
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