Concerning Attitude Adjustments

Now that I've captured your attention through the use of a humorous meme, I'm going to turn serious once again. 

😀

The subject today is one that is familiar to many of us: being 'moody' or having a 'bad attitude.'  It seems to be the default feature for most humans to occasionally (or frequently!) get ourselves into a state of unhappiness, fear, grumpiness, and irritation. The trigger for these emotions can be large or small. We're driving behind a very slowwww car; we can't find the necessary ingredient we need to make our meal; OR, we're writing a blog post at this very moment as someone we live with (no names mentioned) spills seltzer water all over my planning book ruining it for future use (true story!). HA!

It would be easy to blame our 'moods' on those around us, but we are reminded by Elizabeth Elliot that "The secret is Christ in me, not me in a different set of circumstances." The truth is that it is our reaction to the events of life -- the sin within us -- that causes us to grumble and murmur. 

I recently read a helpful article that encourages us to identify and examine biblically the thoughts that are behind our feelings. As the author says, "We are not, however, victims of these moods, and we certainly must not make others victims of them, either. Instead, we must develop the skilled habit of challenging them, ruling over them (Romans 6:12), and laying them aside so that they don’t weigh us (or others) down in the race of faith (Hebrews 12:1)."

Perhaps we can take advantage of opportunities in our own lives to fight against bad thinking by rejecting what is plainly false and embracing the truth. This is what God urges us to do when we are told to "take every thought captive" to Jesus Christ. His way of thinking is right. Our way may need an occasional adjustment. 

Here is the link to the full article. As always I would love to hear your thoughts, either below or via email.