Attitudes are Contagious... Is Yours Worth Catching?!

Attitude – A mental position, the feeling one has for oneself

Contagious – The transmitting of a disease by contact

God wants us to have an attitude of gratitude for all of the marvelous things He has done for us and for who He is; not one of murmuring, complaining, too controlling or too defensive, depressed, or discouraged. It’s so important for us to remember that our thinking process - which produces our attitudes, which in turn produces our actions - plays a major role in our lives, as well as the lives of others. As Proverb 23:7 tells us, "For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he..."

Whether you realize it or not - attitudes are contagious and can be transmitted to someone else at the drop of a hat. Let’s take Lucifer for example - Lucifer had a massive attitude of pride. He really thought he was all that! So much so that he exalted himself. You can read of his boastful thoughts in Isaiah 14:13-14: "For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven; I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the side of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High." That was an attitude of pride. And it was very contagious. If you know the story, you know that a third of the angels caught that same prideful attitude and ended up getting kicked out of Heaven!

Unfortunately, we often try to control our circumstances, our future, and the people around us with our attitude of anger. We must rid ourselves of that diseased perception of reality, because in all actuality, we are demonstrating that we want to be a god... and we saw where that got Lucifer, right? Instead, we must understand that we are creatures and we will never be the creator. The Lord wants us to take on His attitude and His character, so the positive things that people see in us will flow out to them.

Despite what happens during the course of a day, we must conduct ourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. In other words, no matter what unexpected disruptions, frustrations, or difficulties come our way, we are to respond with a Christ-like attitude. Some people may never read their bible, but they will read/see you and your attitude towards the challenges you face on a daily basis. Philippians 2:5 reminds us to let the Lord be an example for us: "Let this mind be in you, which is also in Christ Jesus," can  be interpreted as 'let the same attitude and purpose and humble mind be in you which was in Christ Jesus.'

Jesus maintained a perfect attitude in every situation - whether being nailed to a cross or being betrayed. He prayed about everything and worried about nothing. We too must seek God's guidance about every aspect of our lives and allow Him to work out His perfect will in our lives without our interference. So I say again -Attitudes are contagious, is yours worth catching?

With all that said, let the Church say amen… and AMEN!

Where is your Faith?

Faith: A belief in the value, truth, or trustworthiness of someone or some thing, belief and trust in God

As Hebrews 11:1 tells us, Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Even though we know God’s intentions for us are always good, don't we often get frustrated when we don't understand the why, when, or how of the situations we are facing... or am I the only one?! The thing we must remember is that if we know everything about everything, God would have never told us to have faith!

When we go out to start our car each day, most of us don’t stand there and wonder if it’s actually going to start. No, we simply get in, turn the ignition and have faith in that car and it's ability to start. In fact, most of us don’t give it a second thought - we just know that car is going to start. That’s the same kind of faith the Lord wants each of us to have in Him. If He has healed you from a sickness or a disease, it doesn’t matter what signs appear later on to make you doubt it; you have to know that God has healed you, and that you are indeed healed!

When we ask something of the Lord - as long as it lines up with the word of God - we must have enough faith to know that it’s already done! Keep in mind what the Bible says in James 1:6-8, "But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. A double minded man is unstable in all his ways."

When David went out to fight against Goliath, he said "...who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God" (I Samuel 17:26)? David had so much faith in God that he was not at all afraid of a giant. "David said moreover, The Lord that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine" (I Samuel 17:37). Although David was just a teenager, he had so much faith in God that he did not waver in the midst of such a humongous obstacle. That just goes to show you, it doesn’t matter how small you are or how big you are, all it takes to overcome is having faith in God!

The word tells us that faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God (Romans 10:17). Mind you, we don’t always have to be in church to hear the word - we can simply read our bible. In fact, you can read it out loud so we can actually hear the word. Remember, we walk by faith, not by sight. Just because we don’t see our prayers answered within the next week, that doesn’t mean that it's not going to happen! Besides if faith is the evidence of things not seen, that leads me to think that if you can see it, it's probably not faith!

Faith is a key element required when you are going on for God. As Hebrew 11:6 says, "But without faith it is impossible to please him." I want to please Him - don’t you?!

With all that said, let the Church say amen… and AMEN!       

If You Pray for Rain, You Better be Prepared to Deal with Some Mud!

Rain (verb): to offer, bestow, or give in great quantity
Mud (verb): to cover, smear, or spatter with mud

In the natural, when it rains, there is usually going to be some mud left behind. Things work similarly in the Spiritual realm. However, we cannot allow our Spiritual mud to take us down like quicksand; instead we must understand that it is preparing us for the greater things in life. We must learn to endure, for after all, we're the ones who prayed for rain! It’s not up to us to decide what comes along with that rain.

A long time ago, I had a family member who prayed and asked God for a way out. Their spouse had a serious drug problem, to the point where they had become afraid for their life. It was also a bad environment for their two kids. The spouse would wake up at night saying he saw things climbing the walls and he thought there were snakes in the bed with them. My relative become a nervous wreck and began praying for a way out (or in this case, the rain). Wouldn't you know it, nearly two weeks later their house burnt down (can somebody say MUD). As many of us would, she began asking the Lord why He would allow their house to be burn down. She then heard a voice that said, "you asked me for a way out." What she didn't realize was that burnt house was just step one in the process of her getting out of that rough situation.

Isaiah 49:15 says, "Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee." My friends, the Lord won’t forget his children. Just remember that when you pray for rain, you had better be prepared to deal with some mud!

Ladies and gentlemen - if you are praying for a mate, you might as well put your boots on RIGHT NOW! I don’t think I need to say any more on that particular line of thinking... I'm sure that we all know what time it is in regards to that!

Even on the job, we might pray for a promotion or for another position. Our God is so faithful and will bless us with it in His time... but look out, because there is likely to be some mud coming right along with it. Mud in the form of longer hours, less freedom, and possibly less family time. You might find that people who used to be your coworkers will now try to take advantage of your relationship or that the boss seems to be harder on you than they are with Jim or Jane. And that’s just a bird's eye view; there are so many things we have to deal with. Just remember, "... promotion cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south. But God is the judge; he putteth down one, and setteth up another" (Psalms 75:6-7). Both the rain and the subsequent mud all comes from the Lord.

So here's the good news - God is too Holy, too Righteous and too Good to allow anything to cross our path that is not for His Glory and for our good. He allows the mud to show up so we can learn to trust in him and not in others and to help us grow. The Lord wants us to get to a place where it doesn’t matter we're knee-deep in a pile of mud; we simply accept His headship with thanks and praise.

With all that said, let the Church say amen… and AMEN!

Remember: God Wants Us to Live!

Live: To have a life rich in experience; to exhibit vigor, gusto, or enthusiasm in

Jesus said in His word, "I am come that they (we) might have life, and that they (we) might have it more abundantly" (John 10:10).  The Lord doesn’t want us to simply exist - He wants us to LIVE!  There are so many people out there that are simply existing - they're murmuring and complaining and blaming others for their misfortunes. What those folks don't realize is that, in all actuality God is the head. He wants us to come into agreement with Him and confess that where we are is His master plan; we are exactly where He put us and He’s the one that can deliver us because He’s the one that has it all in control.

Jeremiah 29:4 tells us, "Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, unto all that are carried away captives, whom I have caused to be carried away from Jerusalem unto Babylon." As the scripture continues, verses 5 and 6 reminds us that God is telling us to live - regardless of what our situation may be, we must live; "build houses... plant gardens, and eat the fruit of them.... take wives, have children, give your daughters to husbands, and your sons to wives that they might have children that we may increased and not diminished." Whatever your case (or situation) may be, don't forget that the Lord has allowed it. He allows things to bring us down just so He can take us higher -- but we must be mindful to praise Him and be thankful in all those situations.... after all, there is always something to be thankful for even when it doesn’t appear to be!

Verse 7 of Jeremiah 29 says, "and seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captives, and pray unto the Lord for it: for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace." Your city could be your job or things going on in your home or with your kids or co-workers; but when those things come up to interrupt your day, you should immediately start praying that the Lord would give them peace, because in that peace you will have peace.

Jeremiah 29:10 and 11 reminds us, "....I will visit you, and perform my good word toward you... for I know the thoughts (plans) that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil to give you an expected end (future). The Lord will come and visit us a whole lot quicker if we allow that joy on the inside of us to work on the outside. 

My friends, remember that God is the head over all things and all situations. You and I might not be planting gardens or getting married; but we are here doing something and whatever it is, God wants us to LIVE right here where we are!

With all that said, let the church say amen... and AMEN!

You Can't Move Forward If You're Always Looking Back!

Forward: to advance onward; to send ahead

Backward: toward the back; in reverse order

My friends, I know this sounds obvious, but sometimes things have to be said aloud for them to sink in: we can’t go forward if we are spending most of our time looking back! It’s like we can’t let go of the very thing that got us in the position that we are in to move forward. Have you ever seen a swimmer win a race by looking backward?! Of course not - he or she is trying to reach their goal - they simply don't have time to waste looking backwards.

I know this sweet lady who once had a beautiful house on the water. When she reached eighty years old, she decided the house was too much for just her and decided to sell it. Luckily for her, she sold when the housing market was very good, which put her in a position to have a brand new house built that was the perfect size for her. However, she can't see the beauty of what God has done for her because her heart and mind are still so focused on what she had. Every now and then, she still goes by the old house and when she does, she complains about how the house looks, and about how the yard is being maintained. She can’t enjoy the present for looking at the past.

Think about the children of Israel - they had only been out of Egypt three days when they started complaining! Exodus 16:3 tells us the story, "And the children of Israel said unto them, Would to God we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the flesh pots, and when we did eat bread to the full; for ye have brought us forth into this wilderness, to kill this whole assembly with hunger." While the children of Israel were in bondage in Egypt, they cried out to God and He gave them something better, but once they were out of bondage, they couldn’t even enjoy the manna God sent down from Heaven because they were so busy looking back on the bread they once had.

Of course, we really didn’t have to go ALL THE WAY back to the children of Israel. We can just look at people we know in the work place. Some folks have worked hard and have performed well in the role God allowed them to have. As a reward, when a higher position became available, God honored their hard work by moving them up. Now, he or she can't move forward and excel in their new position because they are constantly trying to micro-manage the position they left behind. So you tell me, how are they going to move forward if they spend all of their time looking backward?

Friends, let's not miss out on all of the beautiful things that God has placed in front of us by wasting time looking backward! We must learn to let whatever God has moved us from go completely so that we can move forward to the bigger, better things that God has for us.

There is SO much that can be said on this subject, but I don’t want to be like that Pastor who went to the dentist for a set of false teeth. The first Sunday after he got his new teeth, he only preached for eight minutes. On the second Sunday after he got his new teeth, he preached for ten minutes. On the third Sunday, that Pastor preached for 2 hours and 48 minutes! After church on that third Sunday, the congregation asked him what happened to make him preach so long. The Pastor replied, "on that first Sunday, my gums hurt so bad that I could only talk for 8 minutes. On the second Sunday, my gums hurt so bad that I could only talk 10 minutes. But this third Sunday, I put my wife’s teeth in by mistake and I just couldn’t shut up!"

So before you all start wondering whose teeth I put in today, let the Church say amen… and AMEN!