attitude pt3- how you got that attitude

Ever consider how you got that attitude? How are our attitudes formed? Consider this:

1. What is in me determines what comes out of me.

"... Out of men's hearts, come evil thoughts of lust, theft, murder, adultery, wanting what belongs to others, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, pride, and all other folly. All these vile things come from within; they are what pollute you and make you unfit for God." Mark 7:20-23 TLB

Jesus is saying that our behavior, in this case very negative behavior, comes out of what is already in our heart. It works the same way with attitude. The outward attitude we display is only a reflection of what's already on the inside.

2. For the most part, I choose what goes in me.

I'm sure you've heard the one about the two guys who sat down to eat lunch. The first guy opened his lunch box, took out his sandwich and said, "I can't believe it! Baloney again. I hate baloney sandwiches. This is the fourth time this week I've had baloney. I can't stand baloney!"

The second guy said, "Well, why don't you say something to your wife?" The first man said, "What good will that do? I make my own lunch."

The truth is, that when it comes to attitude, we all make our own lunch. Most of the baloney in our lives we have put there ourselves. I choose the majority of what enters into and resides in my mind. And so do you.

To be fair, some "input" you can do nothing about - some of the people you work with or live with have so much junk on the inside of them that it eventually spews over onto everyone around them. And it takes a lot of work to keep it from dragging you down.

But what about the stuff we voluntarily invite into our minds? According to Jesus, they affect our entire life, including our attitude.

[Jesus said,] "The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eyes are bad, your whole body will be full of darkness." Matthew 6:22-23 NIV

What did he mean by that? He meant that whatever we focus on and allow in will eventually fill us up.

3. I choose my attitude and am solely responsible for it.

If my attitude is positive, it is a direct reflection of the positive stuff in me that I chose to put in there. If it's negative, it's a direct reflection of negative stuff that I have allowed to enter into and take up residence in me.

That's why none of us can make excuses for our attitude. We chose it. I chose mine. You chose yours. No one else is responsible for the attitudes!

Today, you are responsible for your attitude. How is it?