Perhaps the fact my pulse is steady and my breathing calm is all the proof I need that blessings are unfolding; that soon my eyes will be able to focus through the haze and see my Redeemer actually coming.
Very few of our circumstances are directly under our control and can be instantly changed. And even if and when they are, it doesn’t mean life will actually improve. That’s because the best and most permanent changes in life are always inside jobs.
To decide which direction I will concentrate my attention - inside or outside myself - is a choice, and my decision will be reflected in which attitude I will put on.
I wish my attitude was like a tattoo - something I could permanently have placed into my skin where it wouldn’t rub off. But it’s more like a garment. Something I put on. Which also means I can take it off anytime I choose.
But here’s my problem, because my attitude is changeable, it doesn’t feel like it’s really me, so when I think I should “improve” my attitude, I feel like a phony.
Luckily, I don’t feel like a phony when I wear clothes in public. I don’t feel like a phony when I dress for occasions, even if I don’t feel like going to them. I dress in clothes in order to appropriately interact with society, and I should feel the same about the attitude I choose to display.
A good attitude honors others. It doesn’t make everything about me. A good attitude is a loving act.
It’s funny that to change my life I have to first change my attitude. I have to change my focus away from myself in order to really get what I most need and want - and that is to operate in relationships with others that are mutually uplifting and supportive. It isn’t ultimately about me against the world. It’s me and my friends against the things in this world that pull us apart and pull us down.
But what if I go to my attitude closet and there’s nothing to wear?
What if my circumstances are so bleak and difficult that I can’t even take a first step to change?
Then it’s time to borrow the attitudes of others - to ask for help and receive encouragement - to be reminded - that I have already come through a lot. And what seems to be coming in terms of difficulties is really not much different from what I have already endured.
What we can and need most to manage life, it turns out, is just our attitude.
This, at times, seems fixed and impossible to change, but the truth is it is the only doorway through which we must go if we really want a better life (as opposed to just whining about wanting a better life and doing nothing productive to arrive at one).
The best exercise for attitude adjustment is to focus on things to be grateful for. It is choosing to look in one direction and not another. It is a discipline and like any exercise, at first, things are stiff, clumsy and even uncomfortable.
And no one said there won’t be tears along the way. This too is a part of healing and recovery.
So, in the midst of everything that is obviously bad, the way out is to find the beauty and concentrate on appreciating every little blessing until the sun finally dawns on that brand new day.
What an uplifting piece Ben. Your illustrations were excellent. Attitude is so important and affects all of those around us. Gratitude and focusing out are definitely ways we can change our thinking. But the paragraph about "attitude honoring others and it being a loving act" is so profound and one I will try to remember on a daily basis. If I am able to make this my choice it will also honor God.
Ben, thank you for your words. and for the reminders in the Psalm.