2009 - Day 9 - A Positive Attitude

January 9, 2009 … Swindoll’s Topic for Today: A Positive Attitude

Passage of the Day: Genesis 4: 4 - 19 Go to this hyperlink to read, study, and meditdate on this passage.

My Journal for Today: Norman Vincent Peale became a famous Christian author and speaker in the 1950s by writing a book entitled, The Power of Positive Thinking. Peale was the Joel Osteen of his day; and his positive thinking gospel became all the rage. Now, I’m not an advocate of the “word of faith” teachings which many so-called “Christian” thinkers and teachers put forth, from Peale to Osteen and others. However, in the life of Joseph and in this one passage, we see that having and exercising a positive outlook on life, coupled with a “surrender-mode” attitude in one’s relationship with God, can produce some remarkable outcomes.

What a positive attitude Joseph had, having been unjustly thrown into the slammer at the false accusation of Potiphar’s wife. And that’s in the context of having been thrown into a pit by his brothers and sold into Egyptian slavery. And still, when he was confronted by these two court officers, the butler and baker for the Pharaoh, what is Joseph’s first thought? Was it, “Hey guys, I know how you feel; life is a bummer, isn’t it?” No; almost reflexively Joseph notes these two men are down and out; and with positive gusto, he offers to help.

And as Charles Swindoll points out in his devotional entry for today, what Joseph does to help these men is solid evidence of a positive outlook on life. Because he offers to help these men interpret their dreams. Surely you know or remember what happened the last time Joseph attempted to interpret the dreams of others. It involved his brothers; and what happened? Yes, Joseph was thrown into, as Swindoll writes, “pit city” and sold down the river into Egypt as a slave. So, most of us, given such a history, would be quite fearful, negative, and guarded, being in prison with Joseph’s history, meeting these men who needed to have their dreams interpreted. But not Joseph; … he saw a need and with positive, almost reflexive responsiveness, he responded to help. That’s a God thing; and it was a God-driven choice … a positive choice … to exercise positive faith rather than negatively based fears.

A positive attitude (which I believe is a combination of humility and faith) does not create the power to help others. In others words, faith in action, as some would teach today, does not have power, in and of itself. No, rather, a positive attitude, with choices that act on that attitude, provide the platform to allow God to pour His enabling and empowering grace into the actions which are driven by the positive attitude. Joseph didn’t relent to the natural fears which most of us would have, given his past and present circumstances. Joseph rather becomes a model of being able to see needs and act because of his Godly attitude and his willingness to let God use him.

So, I’m confronted and convicted by this reading and study today. How about you? I have to ask myself, when I see others who are in need and I have a history to recognize their pain or suffering, would I balk and feel an avoidance response; or … would I be able to say, “I know how you feel, let me help!” ? I pray it would be the latter; don’t you? And I know that developing a positive attitude, a God-surrendered attitude (see Phil. 2: 5 and Romans 8: 31), is the foundation for such response.

My Prayer Today: Lord, develop in me a heart of Joseph … to see needs and respond in faith as You can use me to help meet the needs of others. Amen