The Spiritual Fitness Manualናሙና

A Positive Mental Attitude - Part 1

By Richard Glickstein, President, The National Bible Association

Seven years ago, my wife confronted me with something that was really hard to hear. She told me that I had a negative attitude. She was right and I knew it. I had been a Christian for over 30 years yet I was negative, critical and judgmental. 

I chose that day to change my attitude. I wanted to become a better husband, father and man of God. I knew that the scriptures were the only real way to do it. A positive thinking course or a book might help a little with some mental exercises, but they all seem to build upon the wrong foundation: pride. I knew that only the Word of God had the power to transform me with the right emphasis about who I am. 

I began studying the scriptures to see what the Bible said about a positive mental attitude and then over a period of time on a daily basis, I applied the principles.

Today, I can honestly tell you that they work. About four years ago, after I responded to my wife in a positive manner to a difficult situation that she was worried about, she turned to our daughter and said, “Can you believe the change in Father? He is so positive!”

Here is what I found out from the Bible. Apply these principles each day and you will develop a positive, healthy attitude that is God-centered.

1. You are a sinner, imperfect and will fail every day but God accepts you with all of your imperfections.

Accept yourself because God does. This is one of the first building blocks of a positive mental attitude because you know who you are but you also know the potential of what He can do through you. 

2. A positive attitude is like faith: it is a choice. 

You have an opportunity each moment of each day to choose how you are going to view your circumstances and how you are going react to them. As the expression goes, “Is the cup half-full or half-empty?” Make the choice to be positive in your thinking today and get your thoughts and feelings in line.