Attitude

What if I were to tell you that there is a specific way to live, would you believe me? What if I were to say that all of the bickering, backbiting, and angry arguments were at least half our fault? Would you raise an eyebrow, and scoff at the idea, would you be quick to offer up a rebuff of well they were asking for it, or they started it? What if I were to tell you that as soon as you take your fist conscious breath of the day you have already started to make choices that will not only effect your day, but the day of everyone around you? It all comes down to one little word that has a huge impact on our lives, and our spiritual health, that word is attitude.

What is your attitude? How do you face the day? When you wake up in the morning, what is the first thing that races through your mind? How you answer these questions goes a long way in not just getting an idea of where your priorities lie, but it goes a long way in showing where you are spiritually. See the Lord told us what our attitude should be. He spelled it out clearly when he told us the two greatest laws. Love your God with all your heart, all your mind, and all your strength, and the second is much like the first. Turn and love your brother (those in your community) as you love yourself. Love is the attitude that we must pursue, and make no mistake about it. Many might call love an emotion, but it is in fact an attitude. It takes work, it takes commitment, and it takes perseverance.

If we try to live the attitude of love then the arguments go away. I know you are thinking what??? How will that work? Well the easiest way to stop an argument is for one side to shut up. Think back to your last argument, what really came of it? Hot words, things said that were not meant, things taken out of context and skewed….the argument becomes more about winning than it is abut fixing anything. How is that love? God loves us, and He wants us to love each other the same, we cannot do that if we are always tearing each other down. It is not enough to just find an outlet for our angry actions, we must learn to master them and live out of love for one another. It reminds me of a young man who had a terrible temper.

There was a little boy with a bad temper. His father gave him a bag of nails and told him that every time he lost his temper, to hammer a nail in the back fence. The first day the boy had driven 37 nails into the fence. Then it gradually dwindled down. He discovered it was easier to hold his temper than to drive those nails into the fence. Finally the day came when the boy didn't lose his temper at all. He told his father about it and the father suggested that the boy now pull out one nail for each day that he was able to hold his temper. The days passed and the young boy was finally able to tell his father that all the nails were gone. The father took his son by the hand and led him to the fence. He said, "You have done well, my son, but look at the holes in the fence. The fence will never be the same. When you say things in anger, they leave a scar just like this one. You can put a knife in a man and draw it out. It won't matter how many times you say I'm sorry, the wound is still there. A verbal wound is as bad as a physical one. Friends are a very rare jewel, indeed. They make you smile and encourage you to succeed. They lend an ear, they share a word of praise, and they always want to open their hearts to us.

It is all about the attitude of love….how many nails have you driven into your fence?

Peace,
Brian