It's A Matter of Attitude

Forrest S. Clark, D. Min. © 1997

It seems to me that there are two basic approaches to life. The proverbial partially filled glass of water illustrates these approaches. Is the glass half-full or is it half-empty? Perhaps, the greatest difference between people is in what they anticipate. What do you anticipate? What are you looking for? What are you waiting for, hoping for?

Norman Vincent Peale told of an old man who appeared on a popular television program. He had received a prize for winning a contest and he proceeded to steal the show with his quick wit and exuberant spirit. The host of the show said to him, "It's easy to see that you are a very happy man. What's your secret? Let us in on it." "Well, son," the fellow said, "it's as plain as the nose on your face. When I wake up in the morning, I have two choices. One is to be unhappy; the other is to be happy. And I want you to know, sonny, that I'm not as dumb as I may look. I'm smart enough to choose happiness. I just make up my mind to be happy . . . that's all there is to it." (Have a Great Day, 1985).

Attitude; it's a matter of attitude. Of course, there are folks more like John Randolph of Virginia, one of the heroes of the Revolutionary War era. Randolph seemed to have everything going for him. He had exhaustless energy, initiative, honesty, and a talent for business. But historian Gamalial Bradford, after analyzing Randolph's public life, said of him, that John Randolph opposed all parties, all movements, and pretty much all people. In short, he said, "he was a furious negative -- nothing more." That's a tragic waste of life brought about by an unnecessarily negative view of the world.

What is your attitude toward life? Is it basically negative or is it positive? Do you say I can't stand the dizziness? Or do you say I can get through this! Do you say I can't stand being helpless? Or do you say, Thank God for all the people who have been there when I needed them? Do you say I could never do that? Or do you say I'll give it a try?

Peter Marshall once preached a sermon on "The Problem of Falling Rocks," alluding to the signs that appear alongside the road in some areas. Marshall said, "You�have two alternatives: you can drive on and risk the falling rocks, creeping along, peering anxiously upward at every rock, stopping every time a rock looks like it might dislodge, never seeing the view and being in pain the whole time. And you will never change the fact that when the rock decides to respond to gravity it will fall whether you are watching or not. Or, you can go to the mountains, observe the sign, be cautious, but decide not to worry about falling rocks and enjoy the drive . . . The worrying of the driver has absolutely no effect upon the rock."

Attitude IS important. Do you get so absorbed in worrying about rocks that might fall on you that you forget to appreciate the gift of the scenery around you? Or do you enjoy the beauty framed by those rocks that might fall, but that aren't falling right now?

Several years ago, I saw the results of a study that said people identified as being pessimistic are more likely to die within the next ten years than those seen as optimistic. The most negative persons had the highest death rate. Do we need to conclude, therefore, don't worry, be happy?

We all have days when we find it hard to be positive, days when the negatives we encounter in life seem overwhelming. The Psalmist often speaks for us in those situations. For instance, he speaks with certainty and surety when he says, Hear, O Lord, when I cry aloud, be gracious and answer me. We can seek God's face even in the darkest hours and know that God does not forsake us. And he also says, I believe that I shall see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.

So how do we translate that faith statement into life action? Let's learn from a little book from Arco Publishers that is entitled Tips on Presiding. In that book, the writer says, "When the chair[person] of a meeting is presented with a negatively worded motion, he[/she] should ask the maker of the motion to make it positive. The purpose is not to alter the intent of the motion, but simply to make it workable. Experience has taught that negatively worded motions tend to defeat their own purposes." Negatively viewed living tends to defeat the purpose of life.

We know that pessimism and optimism are not personality traits we display without any change throughout our lives. Rather, they are learned ways of explaining trouble to ourselves as we go through life. And the influences upon us help determine which one we acquire. Like the woman who walked into the playroom at the doctor's office where her son had been throwing darts. She looked at the five darts in the target, then at the one on the floor, and said to him, "You missed one, didn't you?" That boy is likely to have a hard time developing a positive attitude toward life if that is the message he gets every day.

Attitudes, once learned, can be changed, however. There is life after pessimism. One can recover from this dis-ease. And we need to unlearn this learned grumpiness since optimists are life's big winners. Negative thinkers perform more poorly in school, work, and play, than those who cheerfully face obstacles. Pessimists have poorer resistance, weaker immune systems, are more susceptible to depression, and age physically faster than the optimists.

One way of dealing with the adversities that drive us towards pessimism is to develop a sense of humor. Socrates was a great philosopher in ancient Greece. It is told that one day his wife scolded him with scornful words and dumped a bucket of water upon his head, to which, in true philosophical fashion, Socrates remarked that after so much thunder and lightning, he expected a shower.

It's a matter of attitude. What's yours? Do you have an optimism that carries you through the hard days, or do you try to hide an irascible pessimism behind the label of realism? The attitude with which we approach life is something we learn. And the attitude with which we approach life is the direction in which we lead when called upon to do so.

Jesus tried to fill his disciples with a positive attitude, one that dealt realistically with pain and suffering, but that continued to celebrate the fullness of life as it is given by God. The world you see is a picture of your own state of mind, an outward picture of an inward condition. Just as Jesus called the first disciples to receive with hospitality and grace those who differed and were different, so he calls us today to be open and receptive to new people and ideas and ways. This is the spirit that reflects the mind of Jesus and is the spirit that can lead us to live in peace and harmony with one another and in the mind of Christ. This is the spirit of leadership. It is the spirit we are called to have -- you and I. Will you open yourself to its presence and its leading this morning?

It's a matter of attitude! And the glass is filling up to overflowing. I just make up my mind to be happy. I just make up my mind to see the brilliance of God's light shining in my life and on the world. Thanks be to God!

Forrest

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