Have you ever noticed just how much impact attitude has on life? A person with a bad attitude can have everything going their way and still be completely miserable. On the other hand, some people have such a positive attitude that they can find good in even the worst circumstances. For example, consider the woman in this little tale I recently ran across:
A woman who woke up one morning, looked in the mirror, and saw she had only three hairs on her head. “Great,” she said, “I think I’ll braid my hair today.” So she did, and had a wonderful day.
The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and saw that she now had only two hairs on her head. “Hmm,” she said, “I guess I’ll part my hair down the middle.” So she did, and had a wonderful day.
The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and saw that she had only one hair left on her head. “Wow,” she said, “today I get to wear my hair in a pony tail.” So she did, and had a wonderful, wonderful day.
The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and saw that there wasn’t a single hair on her head.
“Thank goodness!” she exclaimed. “I was running out of things to do with my hair!”
Having the proper attitude is essential because it’s one thing we can actually change. Often it’s very difficult or even impossible to change the circumstances we find ourselves in or the challenges we’re confronted with. And as much as we’d like to, we can’t go back in time and change the past. However, we do have the power to change how we react and respond to these things by changing our attitude. In every situation, we can choose to adopt an unhealthy, negative attitude. Or, like the woman in the mirror, we can choose to look at our lives through the eyes of a positive attitude, one that sees a blessing in every curse and an opportunity hidden in every challenge.
Making the right choice, of course, isn’t always easy. But the Bible assures us that with the help of the Holy Spirit, it’s a choice we can and should make. That’s why in Philippians 2, Paul commands us to “have the same attitude as Christ Jesus.”
Chuck Swindoll puts it this way: “The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude. I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% how I react to it. And so it is with you. We are in charge of our attitude.”
Is life presenting you with some attitudinal challenges at the moment? If so, I hope that you will find the grace to follow our Lord and make the make the right choice.
And in so choosing, may you have a wonderful, wonderful day!
Grace and Peace,
Rev. Dr. Michael Stine
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