5 Things For Friday

It's tough to keep a good attitude if you don't purpose to display one early in the morning! Once you get in the traffic on the interstate and people start honking their horns at you and gesturing that you're #1...your attitude will be TESTED! Friends, it's better to MAINTAIN an attitude than it is to REGAIN an attitude.

Just Do Right

Genesis 4:7 "If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it."

Is it really that difficult to DO THINGS RIGHT?

We don't really know why God didn't accept Cain's offering, except that God looks upon the heart. This verse tells us that Cain's heart was NOT RIGHT with God when he gave the offering. It was not the gift itself, as we later see acceptable grain offerings in the days of Moses. Cain's offering was a representation of his HEART. He did not do what was right in his heart, and so, his offering was not accepted.

One sin leads to another. That is the warning God gave Cain. In fact, like a lion waiting to devour us, sin waits to devour our lives. The loving heart of God reached out to Cain with the warning that sin would like to dominate him, to be the authority over him, bringing him to destruction. But then God told Cain the correct response is to MASTER it. Don't let it master you.

God has been LONG SUFFERING to you and given you opportunity after opportunity to make a course correction.

Is there sin crouching at your door, waiting to dominate your life? Master it! Don't allow it to master you!

We master it, just as Cain could have, by looking to the work of the Seed to come...the SAVIOR! Because of what Jesus did, we can master it! His resurrected life gives us the power to master it rather than be devoured by it.

Cain was about to plot a murder because of jealousy!

Read the verse again. Think about how this verse applies to you each time that you give in to temptation. You can STOP the cycle or go deeper into it.

Consider: If you are caught in a cycle of sin, you can still master it by the power of the risen Christ, the Seed that CRUSHED the rule of Satan!

Allow Jesus to CRUSH...

• Rebellion
• Jealousy 
• Envy
• Disobedience
• Pride
• Etc.,

Rid your heart of...

• Disobedience
• Roughshod
• Bad Attitude

God is ABLE to receive your sacrifice in the RIGHT WAY if your heart is RIGHT.

JUST DO RIGHT! (It's really not that hard.)

I Love CAN DO People!

It is so refreshing to be around POSITIVE people.  They lift you up and keep you focused on what's really important.

I believe each of us should be held accountable for our attitude.  Besides, Philippians 2:5 says we are to have the attitude of Christ.

"Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:"

Sure, we've all had bad days - days where we had less than the best attitude...we all have them.  We're not perfect and we certainly live in a less than perfect world.

Knowing that we all have a bad day from time to time...is one thing.  But what about the person who treats everyone around them like their inferior?  Ever been around this kind of person?  I have little tolerance for someone who treats people like this.  Why do we tolerate this attitude?

If we are going to live a positive life...then we need positive people around us.  People who have a "CAN DO" attitude. 

Pastors need positive people around them as well.  There's nothing worse than when you're casting vision and someone's rolling their eyes, yawning, making groaning noises, checking their phone & doodling - as if they're bored out of their mind.

Keeping a positive attitude is infectious. Even if faced with a challenge, positive people will speak in honest faith and look for solutions.

One of the things we say around BFWC is "don't bring a problem without a solution."  In other words, even if you have a tough issue that needs to be dealt with, before you walk into the office please bring a solution as well.

Are you a "Can Do" person?  Do you see solutions when faced with difficulties?  We cannot avoid problems or less than perfect scenarios, but we can choose to see the positive in everything.

• Choose to be a positive person. 
• Choose to light up the room with your contagious smile. 
• Choose to give honest, yet positive input even in the midst of less than positive circumstances.
• Choose to lift the arms of your leaders.
• Choose to think positive.

YES YOU CAN!