Trusting God Day by Day: 365 Daily Devotions (19 page)

C
onfidence and negativity do not go together. They are like oil and water; they simply do not mix. I used to be a very negative woman, but, thank God, I finally learned that being positive is much more fun and fruitful. Being positive or negative is a choice—it is a way of thinking, speaking, and acting. Either one comes from a habit that has been formed in our lives through repetitious behavior.

You may be like me. I simply got off to a bad start in life. I grew up in a negative atmosphere around negative people. They were my role models, and I became like them. I really didn’t even realize my negative attitude was a problem until I married Dave. He was very positive and began asking me why I was so negative. I had never really thought about it, but as I began to, I realized that I was always that way. I began to understand that I was expecting nothing good—and that is exactly what I got.

People don’t enjoy being around an individual who is negative, so I often felt rejected—which added to my fears and lack of confidence. Being negative opened the door for a lot of problems and disappointments, which in turn fueled my negativity. It took time for me to change, but I am convinced that if I can change, anybody can.

You don’t have to be negative. It’s your choice. When encouraged to think positively, people often retort, “That is not reality.” But the truth is that positive thinking can change your current reality. God is positive, and that is His reality. It is the way He is, the way He thinks, and the way He encourages us to be.

Thinking negatively makes you miserable, and why would you choose to be miserable when you can be happy?

Y
ou can’t control what happens to you, but you can determine to go through it with the right attitude.

In fact, you can choose
beforehand
that you will keep a positive attitude in the midst of every negative situation that presents itself to you. If you make this decision and meditate on it during a good time in your life, then when difficulty arises you will already be prepared to maintain a good attitude.

Throughout history, we have examples of people who have maintained good attitudes in the face of difficult times and thereby turned their problems into opportunities. Specifically, I think of various individuals who were imprisoned and composed some of the most influential writing the world has ever known, such as: “Letter from Birmingham Jail” by Martin Luther King Jr.,
Pilgrim’s Progress
by John Bunyan, and Sir Walter Raleigh’s
The History of the World
. No doubt, these people could have had terrible attitudes as they faced terrible trouble, but they made a decision and maintained the best of attitudes through the worst of times and made contributions that are still read and heard today.

I don’t think they were simply born positive people—I believe they
had to make a choice. And their choice not only benefited themselves, but in the process, blessed the world.

One of the worst mistakes we can make in our thinking is to believe we are just not like
those positive people
and we can’t help it. If you think you can’t do anything about your thinking and attitude, then you’re defeated before you even begin to try. Discipline yourself to stand strong with your positive attitude in every circumstance.

G
od wants to give you favor—kindness that you don’t deserve. We see mention of God’s favor toward many in the Bible, and there’s no reason to think He can’t offer it to you as well. Learn to believe God for favor. Confess several times a day that you have favor with God and man. You will be amazed at the exciting things that happen to you if you speak God’s Word instead of how you feel.

Supernatural favor can be expressed in different ways. You may get the job you want but are not naturally qualified for. People seem to like you for no special reason. You get the best seat in the restaurant with
the best waiter. People give you things for no reason at all. Favor means that someone will stop and let you into a line of traffic while others are zooming by as if you are not even there.

Living in God’s favor is very exciting. When Joseph was cruelly mistreated by his brothers and they sold him into slavery, God gave him favor everywhere he went. He had favor with Potiphar and was placed in charge of his household. He had favor with the jailer during his imprisonment for a crime he did not commit. He had so much favor with Pharaoh that Joseph became second only to Pharaoh in power. Yes, walking in God’s favor is an exciting way to live. We see so many men and women whom we admire in the Bible being given favor: Ruth, Esther, Daniel, and Abraham, just to name a few. Resist and refuse to let doubt convince you that good things won’t happen to you and your family; aggressively expect good things!

I
have heard many people who live in parts of the world where there are four distinct seasons talk about how much they enjoy winter, spring, summer, and fall. They like the variety and the unique beauty, qualities, and opportunities of each season. The Bible tells us God Himself changes times and seasons (see Dan. 2:21).

Seasons change; this is true in the natural world, and it is true in regard to the seasons of our lives. It means that difficult times do not last forever. We may have “off” days, tough weeks, bad months, or even a year that seems to have more than its share of troubles, but every negative experience does come to an end.

Some of the trying situations we find ourselves in seem to go on far too long. When this happens, we are usually tempted to complain or become discouraged. Instead, we need to promptly adjust our attitudes and ask God to teach us something valuable as we press through the situation at hand. According to James 1:2–3, God uses trials and pressure to produce good results in our lives. He always wants to bless us. Sometimes His blessings come through unexpected circumstances we may view as negative, but if we will keep positive attitudes in the midst of those situations, we will experience the positive results God desires to give us.

If you are going through a difficult time right now, let me remind you that this probably isn’t the first challenge you’ve ever faced. You survived the last one (and probably learned some valuable lessons through it), and you will survive this one, too. Your trials are temporary; they won’t last forever. Better days are on their way. Just keep your attitude “up” instead of “down,” and remember that this is just a season and it
will
pass.

I
t is useless to worry about anything and doubly useless to worry about something that is over and done with and that nothing can be done about. If you made a mistake in the past that can be rectified, then go ahead and take action to correct it. But if you cannot do anything about it except be sorry, then ask for forgiveness from God and anyone you may have hurt and don’t worry about it any longer.

Let me remind you that worry is useless… so why do it? God has given us wisdom, and a wise person will not spend their time doing something that produces nothing of any value.

There are many wonderful Scriptures in the Bible that teach us to let go of the past and look to the future. We’re reminded to forget what is behind and keep our eyes facing forward, on God and His plan for us (see Phil. 3:13). We can find peace in the knowledge that God’s compassion and kindness are new every morning and that His faithfulness is abundant (see Lam. 3:22–23). Also, we must never forget that He is able to overcome our mistakes and do far more than we could ever imagine that He could do for us (see Eph. 3:16, 20). God has provided a way for your past to have zero power over you, but it is up to you to receive His gracious gifts of forgiveness, mercy, and a new beginning.

Don’t allow mistakes in your past to fester and threaten your future. When you ask God to forgive you for something that you have done wrong, He is faithful and just to do it. He continuously cleanses us from all unrighteousness (see 1 John 1:9). It’s forgiven and forgotten—but you must do the same!

D
r. Caroline Leaf, a leading brain scientist/learning specialist and committed Christian, notes in her teaching on the brain:
“The Word and science believe that the mind and the brain are one.”
The way you think is voluntary—you can control your thoughts. I want you to give your brain a new job and begin to teach your mind to work for you instead of against you.

One important way to do this is to make the intentional decision that you will begin to think positively. I realize your brain won’t be able to fulfill the new role completely overnight. You may be asking it to undergo a radical transformation, and that will take time. So give it a little grace, but determine that with your diligence and God’s help, your brain will go to work
for
you instead of against you and become a powerful, positive force in your life.

I like what Dr. Leaf says—that the human brain takes “
eighteen years to grow and a lifetime to mature
.” Don’t miss this point. Although every other organ in the body is fully formed when a person is born, and
simply gets bigger as the body gets bigger, the brain actually takes a full eighteen years to be fully formed. After that, it continues to mature until the day a person dies. This means, no matter how old you are, your brain is still maturing. This is great news because it means you do not have to be stuck in any old or wrong thought patterns. Your brain is still maturing, so you can still mature in your thinking.

M
illions of people destroy their lives by feeling guilty about something that is in the past and that they cannot do anything about. When God forgives our sin He also removes the guilt. But just as we must receive His forgiveness, we must also receive freedom from guilt and not let the emotion of guilt control us. If God says we are forgiven and pronounced not guilty, then we should believe His Word more than how we feel.

We frequently hear people say, “I will feel guilty about that the rest of my life.” Or I have heard people say, “I will never get over what I have done.” God’s Word says that when He forgives us, He forgets the offense and there is no more penalty for sin where there is complete remission of it (see Heb. 10:17–18). Why decide that you will feel guilty the rest of your life when God has provided a way for you to live free from it?

Guilt is worry that is rooted in fear. We are afraid that God is angry, or that what we have done wrong is too big and too bad, even for God to forgive. We feel we don’t deserve forgiveness, so we won’t receive it. We worry about what people think of our past sins. We are afraid they will never forgive us or see us as good people again. Guilt has everything to do with the past, and it has the power to ruin your future. Get over it!