Here's a woman who is a warrior if I have ever seen one. A friend I cannot stand next to during church due to the fact our voices are polar opposites. To the girls who can't hold a tune to save their lives- you feel me. I mean, it's nearly ridiculous how someone's voice could sound like a symphony & another's, a dying cat. But Beth is wonderful, a newly wed, & expecting! She is bold, fearless, & well aware of who's image she bears. She is the heart of a leader, a girl you can't help but look to, begging her to teach you how to put one foot in front of the other. & in heels. She is a coheir & conqueror in Christ, & a friend I can count on to pick things up where we left off in the blink of an eye.
She is a blessing, as are her words.
As our women of boldness, embrace her passionate heart.
“The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude, to me, is
more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make or break a company . . . a church . . . a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past...we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. 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 attitudes.”
--Charles R. Swindoll
There is a phenomenon that occurs in my hometown when news is announced. Being guilty of it myself, I am confident to address it and its hidden lie. When my husband and I announced publically that we were expecting, the majority of remarks were congratulatory, though as we found out through the “grapevine” many of the congratulations were followed by, “Oh, how awful their situation must be right now.” The facts others used to form their opinions were true, but the attitude behind the facts differed between their perceptions and our lives.
We fail in our mindset by not realizing the beautiful blessings that surround a situation that is not our own. We have no truth past our assumption of another’s life, which we cannot possibly know. I can say in confidence we are blessed with family and friends who have watched us grow in love, grow in family, and with no doubt would ever let words of negative assumption cross their lips. Our seasons in marriage so far have been in celebration in work, family, a supportive home, and a growing love for each other.
What is beautiful is not what we initially perceive. Redefining this word means we must look past what we have previously determined its definition to be and see it as God may see it.
I love the above quote by Charles Swindoll. Attitude is the beautiful and the ugly depending on how we personally act day to day. When you read the quote, I challenge you to ask yourself honestly in each line, “Do I realize my attitude is . . . more important than the past, than education, than money?” Am I the person who, by my attitude, helps to make or break a church, a company, or a home? Do I wake up and embrace a negative or positive attitude toward the day? Do I linger with attitude about yesterday? We will never be perfect in our attitudes but personally challenging ourselves to begin rethinking in this way does more than release beautiful undertones. We begin to release Attributes of God in our life. In his book, The Knowledge of the Holy, A.W. Tozer describes a series of God’s attributes. In college, I remember a professor explaining that because we are made in God’s image we reflect his attributes-- not all at once and not all the attributes-- but He reflects in us as we reflect in Him. Think about these following attributes and how our attitude causes a reflection or deflection of each.
Wisdom: Do we choose to use the knowledge we obtain to uplift and build or strike down and dissemble? I admire my husband for his manly ways of conflict resolution. In man-code if someone says something that gets back to you through the gossip grapevine you simple shrug it off and move on. It may be an irritant for a moment, but it is already of the past. Now, if you are face to face with the person and they were to say the insult, man-code (though not recommended) says to give them a good punch, and then, return to the place you were before the comment was made. This is hysterical to me considering women tend to hold painful remarks inside forever, letting them cause issues with self-confidence, a hardening of the heart, and diminish the beauty of who they really are. Men simply shrug it off or throw a punch and shrug it off. Also, remember that when others attack with vicious comments there is always a reason behind the comment that has nothing to do with you. Another quote I kept in mind always is , “Hurt people hurt people.” –Pastor Dave Watkins
Faithfulness: When times seem rough, do we stay holding to the promises God has for us? Or do we immediately search for a way to fix a situation immediately even when it is not in our own time? When my husband and I got engaged we sat down and made a plan. Even before we were engaged, I remember him telling me that if he took a job out of state he would not leave without me, even if he had to kidnap and stuff me into the trunk of his car, I was going with him. That was nearly a year ago! Last Monday he started his first job out of college. We can now, finally, pay all of our bills and then some. And in the normal fashion, God took till the last measly pennies of our bank account to bless our family with this job. But, his timing is perfect and we are so grateful to add this page to our journey and accept the lessons it has taught us on Faithfulness.
Love: God’s love is not simply an emotion, but it is also an action. That action is specific. The death of Christ on the cross was a specific action of love from the arrest to the beating of Jesus, to the last breath he took. Love meant looking past all the pain and evil. Love meant that it did not matter who disappointed you or whom you felt did you injustice. Love was and will always be past that. There have been friends in my life who have spoke and shown me love, but as time went on found a way to show their love was circumstantial. I have let down friends and friends have let me down, but love is what both sides had to let in to let go. Read that again. Love is what both sides had to let in to let go. Love does not say, “because you did this and I am hurt from it, I will not love you in this time because I am hurt”. Love is a face to face I am hurt but regardless you are someone I love and therefore I choose to let love in and heal from the hurt. Always, go to one another face to face. It is biblical and respectful. I made a rule with the strength of my husband behind me that those who wish to confront any other way will not receive a response. For instance, Facebook messages are not considered reasonable confrontation. Your message will be read and deleted promptly, and if you wish to speak your peace, you may ask to meet me face to face. It is out of respect that thoughts are thought out and spoken in a place where both parties can be seen, heard, felt, and find love.
Justice: A perfect addition to Love, justice is what is demanded to bring a penalty for an action. Obviously, I am not talking about our legal justice system but our personal life justice system. There are matters we let create an attitude in us from day to day life that we should easily turn a cheek, but instead, we choose a path to vendetta. Believe that yesterday being in the past means the battle is over. Let hurt go. But, I do caution you to think seriously if the situation or person is a repeated hurt source and if so should you love from afar? In the pursuit of beauty and attitude our surroundings will play a huge part in how we think, act, and feel. If a situation is consistent in damaging your glow . . . let them or it go. Another great piece of advice I gained during my college years was that forgiveness is mandatory but forgetting can be dangerous in cases of repeated offenses. That does not mean we hold that hurt and pain with us but that we are wise about who and what is affecting our lives positively and negatively.
Gracious: Understanding you have so much and being gifted when we do not necessarily deserve it is a beautiful attitude. Thank God every day for what you are given. I love hearing from my husband and agreeing that when we met the timing could not have been better. I needed him as much as he needed me, and our lives needed this adventure. The blessings pointed us into a direction neither of us saw coming but both of us desired and needed. Life is beautiful to us because of this gracious attitude, even in the bleak moments.
Mercy: Finally, this attribute and our attitude of mercy is so valuable. Sometimes mercy is in the silence as another is seeking to cause you pain. Mercy is found in the open door that welcomes each mistake looking for the hidden blessings not the wreckage left behind. Mercy is knowing and pursuing each day new with excitement for what will come tomorrow. Mercy is knowing you are forgiven and the beauty of forgiveness will impact a new life if you choose to take it. And remember, you are responsible for mercy towards others as others are to you. Always give it whether you receive it back or not.
Each Attribute has an attitude behind it. We are created to be in God’s image, and just like Moses, when we worship and live in that image there is a glow that surrounds us. It is not a wild notion for strangers to walk up to you and say there is just something different about you without you proclaiming to be Christian. I encourage you to pick up a copy of A.W. Tozer’s The Knowledge of the Holy and study the other attributes. Start to see your life as a redefined beautiful adventure.
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