Have A Good Attitude

Acts 14:1-20

New International Version (NIV)

 ¹ At Iconium Paul and Barnabas went as usual into the Jewish synagogue. There they spoke so effectively that a great number of Jews and Greeks believed. ² But the Jews who refused to believe stirred up the other Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers. ³ So Paul and Barnabas spent considerable time there, speaking boldly for the Lord, who confirmed the message of his grace by enabling them to perform signs and wonders. ⁴ The people of the city were divided; some sided with the Jews, others with the apostles. ⁵ There was a plot afoot among both Gentiles and Jews, together with their leaders, to mistreat them and stone them. ⁶ But they found out about it and fled to the Lycaonian cities of Lystra and Derbe and to the surrounding country, ⁷ where they continued to preach the gospel.

 ⁸ In Lystra there sat a man who was lame. He had been that way from birth and had never walked.

 ⁹ He listened to Paul as he was speaking. Paul looked directly at him, saw that he had faith to be healed

 ¹⁰ and called out, “Stand up on your feet!” At that, the man jumped up and began to walk.  ¹¹ When the crowd saw what Paul had done, they shouted in the Lycaonian language, “The gods have come down to us in human form!” ¹² Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul they called Hermes because he was the chief speaker. ¹³ The priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside the city, brought bulls and wreaths to the city gates because he and the crowd wanted to offer sacrifices to them.
 ¹⁴ But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of this, they tore their clothes and rushed out into the crowd, shouting: ¹⁵ “Friends, why are you doing this? We too are only human, like you. We are bringing you good news, telling you to turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made the heavens and the earth and the sea and everything in them. ¹⁶ In the past, he let all nations go their own way. ¹⁷ Yet he has not left himself without testimony: He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons; he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy.” ¹⁸ Even with these words, they had difficulty keeping the crowd from sacrificing to them.
 ¹⁹ Then some Jews came from Antioch and Iconium and won the crowd over. They stoned Paul and dragged him outside the city, thinking he was dead.
 ²⁰ But after the disciples had gathered around him, he got up and went back into the city. The next day he and Barnabas left for Derbe.

     We make a choice every waking moment of our lives.  When we wake-up in the morning, we choose the attitude that will ultimately guide our thoughts and actions through the day.  I'm convinced our best attitudes come from a clear understanding of our own identity, a clear sense of our  mission, and a deep sense of God's purpose for our lives.  That sort of God-honoring attitude encourages us to press on, to focus on the goal, to respond in remarkable ways to life's most extreme circumstances.
 
    It was that kind of remarkable attitude Paul and Barnabas consistently maintained throughout their missionary journey.  The two faced and overcame countless and extreme obstacles with a relentless determination to stay focused on the goal.
 
    We all need a reliable game plan for facing extreme circumstances.  The situation that now stares at you may be fixable, or it may seem impossible to overcome in your own strength.  It might be the result of your own actions, or you may be an innocent victim, caught in the backlash of someone else's consequences.  Whatever it is, we can easily become intimidated, even fearful, and eventually immobile when facing such obstacles.  The only way to move beyond that sort of paralyzing situation is to learn to accept and trust God's plan.  You release the controls and wait for Him to move.  And while you wait, maintain a good attitude.  God knows what you are going through before you go through it, so wait on Him. God has a plan for everyone that He creates, but it is up to us to walk in His will.

Are you desperate for something different? 

Then read this passage, and let God be your refuge.

Psalm 34:8

New International Version (NIV)

 ⁸ Taste and see that the LORD is good;
   blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.

REGRETS???

1 John 1:9

⁹ If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Mark 11:24

²⁴ Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.

Regrets always produce one thing--depression. In my experience, regret is a product of creative thinking and excessive guilt, rather than a Godly remorse. As long as we live we will have set backs, missed opportunities, and major screw-ups. If the only way you see things is through a negative set of eyes, then you will always have regrets.

Do you regret the past?

......But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead.    Philippians 3:13

If you look back at the past year, or life, and have regrets on the path you took. Stop thinking that way the moment you catch yourself doing that! Its not fair to judge your past mistakes based on the information you have now. When you see missed opportunities,(it's a good thing) it means you have matured. Therefore, when that problem comes along again, you will have the insight to avoid the same mistake. So the next time you have missed opportunities that you had failed to see in the past, you should be excited because it means you are growing. While you are regretting the past, present opportunities are passing you by.

Do you regret your sins?

¹⁰ Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death. 2 Corinthians 

You don't have to regret the sins you have asked forgiveness for. It is a trick of the devil to have you focus on past mistakes. The devil would like to trick me into thinking that I missed out on God's blessing, because of my sins. The fact of the matter is, we serve a redemptive, gracious God. The bible says when you ask for forgiveness, God cast our sins as far as the east is from the west. Do not fall for the enemies tricks..........focus on what God has for you now, not what the enemy stole from you yesterday.

Are You Hungry?

James 1:19-20

New International Version (NIV)

 ¹⁹ My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, ²⁰ because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires.

   Many Christians today are suffering from spiritual anorexia and starving to death spiritually. Even though they may have plenty of Bibles in their homes for spiritual nourishment, and even though the church (a spiritual supermarket) is right down the street, these Christians suffer from spiritual malnutrition. One primary reason for this is that they have not decided to make becoming like Christ their sole purpose. If He is not your passionate purpose, everything else you do will be wasted. God’s purpose for us is to be conformed to the image of His Son, to be transformed by His glory, and to be made holy and righteous like Christ.

   We must make the Bible the first place we go to find truth, not the last. We must be quick to hear His truth. Often times, I see people that are hungry for the word and it's truths. Unfortunately, a lot of these people stay hungry, because they are not willing to get up and eat from God's buffet line. They would rather sit around eating the crumbs from another persons dedication to God's word. We must break this cycle. I won't go to Heaven based on my wife's salvation, I have to work towards a relationship with God on my own. 

It's time to let God move in your life! Dig into his word, and never be hungry again.

Transformed by Trials

James 1:2-4

New International Version (NIV)

 ² Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters,^[a] whenever you face trials of many kinds, ³ because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. ⁴ Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

   The television show “Extreme Makeover” puts people through all kinds of adverse circumstances so that they might look better than they did when they started the makeover process. They undergo surgical procedures, grueling workouts, and physical pain in order to be transformed into something beautiful.

   One of the primary ways God makes us more like Christ is by allowing us to face trouble. To conform us into the image of Christ, we don’t just need minor surgery--we require major transformation. In fact, God has to put a brand new nature inside us.  Just as a sculptor chips away at a piece of marble to turn it into a beautiful sculpture, God uses trials to chip away at us, sculpting us to resemble the image of Christ.

   Like a photographer developing his film in a darkroom, God develops a beautiful photograph of Christlikeness in us when we go through dark times. Will you let Him make you over, or will your trials be wasted? Take the time today, and ask God to do a major surgery in your life. It will be painful, but in the end you will look more like Christ.