The far reach of a bad attitude
When our attitude towards daily life turns bitter we often do not realize how far from the Lord it takes us. While we are not going to be all happy and cheerful all the time, we should never allow ourselves to take a sour attitude and wear it as a crown. My bad attitude was impacting more than just myself and my own walk with the Lord. It was impacting my family. My bad attitude was impacting my church. But it didn’t stop there. To be honest, I do not know how many others were affected by my attitude. I wonder if this is what Paul was warning against: Let us not therefore judge one another any more: but judge this rather, that no man put a stumblingblock or an occasion to fall in his brother’s way (Romans 14:13).
It is easy to see how a bad attitude, no matter how righteous we believe ours is, can become a stumbling block for others. When we have a bad attitude, it becomes easy to pass judgment on others. It also becomes easy to question their motives and to assign ulterior reasons for the things they do. And from this stage, it is easy to grow bitter towards the Lord and His people. If we honestly consider the local church as a body of Christ, one person with a bad attitude can become a cancer which drags the entire congregation down. We allow ourselves to become a tool to be used by Satan to disrupt the ministry of the church.
A change of attitude is possible
For me, the difference was made when during one of my daily Bible readings last week, I read this passage: For I will set mine eyes upon them for good, and I will bring them again to this land: and I will build them, and not pull them down; and I will plant them, and not pluck them up. And I will give them an heart to know me, that I am the LORD: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God: for they shall return unto me with their whole heart (Jeremiah 24:6-7). This is a promise made to the Jewish people during the diaspora after God had given judgment against Judah and Israel. After all the Jewish people had done against the Lord and after all the bitterness, He was making a way to restore them.
But it is the seventh verse that caught my eye: And I will give them an heart to know me, that I am the LORD: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God: for they shall return unto me with their whole heart (Jeremiah 24:7). The Lord was promising to give them a new heart! A companion verse in Ezekiel expanded the Lord’s message: Cast away from you all your transgressions, whereby ye have transgressed; and make you a new heart and a new spirit: for why will ye die, O house of Israel? (Ezekiel 18:31). The teaching is clear. When we are ready to forsake our sins and repent, the Lord will renew our hearts.
Time squandered is simply… gone!
One of the hardest things to come to terms with is the amount of time wasted while having a bad attitude. We all have those moments in our life where we will say things like, “if I could do it all over again,” or “if I had another chance…” Truth is we can’t go back. But what’s even more surprising is the Lord doesn’t want us to dwell on those times either. Jesus’ teaching as recorded by Luke can be applied here: And Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God (Luke 9:62). We can’t relive or redo the past. The past is the past. Dwelling on things we cannot change will not improve our lives but simply get in the way of us moving forward in life.
Paul expounds on this teaching of Jesus: Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new (2 Corinthians 5:17). Maybe we focus on our life before our salvation and see it as squandered time. But here’s the thing – it’s now behind you. You’re no longer chained to that old life. All those things do not matter to the Lord. What does matter is right now – today!
Making today the priority
When I worked for the Boy Scouts of America, we were told to start each day with a question. While the focus of the question was wrong, it is a good concept. This morning, as I have for the past seven days, I asked myself, “what are you going to do today to advance His kingdom?” Now that I have begun to ask myself this daily for the past week, I’ve noticed the difference it makes. The Lord doesn’t want us to have the feeling we’ve squandered our time either. And when we make Him the priority each day there’s grace which He gives to help us through the day.
Most of us have pets. And some of us even have bird feeders that feed a variety of wildlife. God uses us to provide for their needs because we have an opened heart to do so. These animals we care for take life one day at a time. Tomorrow never enters their mind until today becomes yesterday. And once today becomes yesterday, they don’t worry about what happened. There’s a new today which requires their focus. In other words, don’t worry about what happened yesterday but focus on making today the priority. Maybe this is one of the lessons Jesus wanted us to learn as he said, Consider the ravens: for they neither sow nor reap; which neither have storehouse nor barn; and God feedeth them: how much more are ye better than the fowls? (Luke 12:24).
There will always be tough times
These tough times I’m referring to are the ones of our own creation – the ones no one else sees but are waged in our mind. It is a part of our human nature to second guess ourselves. For some of us, it is far easier to tear ourselves down than to accept we make mistakes and have to continue to move forward. For me, it is an ongoing process and I know I will have good days and bad days. But as I move forward, I would like to make each day a priority and make the most of the time I have for my Lord. There’s no more fitting last thought for today’s post than what Peter wrote, Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you. (1 Peter 5:6-7).
