Very High Expectations: In Love And Thankfulness

Changing my thinking.  I come from Toledo.  In Toledo most people (except for my friends, of course :))  thought negatively.  But for some time I was involved with people who wanted to teach me I could not trust my own thinking.  I became negative about my own decision making.  Has this ever happened to you?  This is what I learned: It is important not to blame people for any of our own decisions even among strong influences.  This is because there is a very important lesson for all of us to discover here:  the importance of growing in trusting our own instincts and being confident and positive in our own decision-making, even among influences in our lives.  Often times it is ourselves and our own thinking we have to be alert of more than others.  How can we do keep our thought life positive and looking forward?  The two driving forces that I’m learning and thinking about today is: 

(1) God loves me and

(2) Thankfulness.   

1.  The love of God:  Jesus became sin (2 Corinthians 5:21)  so that we may become (viewed as being in, and examples of) the righteousness of God (approved and accepted and in right relationship with, by his goodness).   We are set completely free and it is virtually crucial that we know and thus our thinking will reflect this daily.  

There was an event that was really only taking place negatively in my own mind.   It was bugging me for some time, and then I realized, wait!  God loves me.   That means he only has good set up for me on every occasion of every day of my life.  That means even when I don't feel it.  He loves us so much.  Thus we don't have to waist even a moment with a single thought that there is bad set up for us.  No!  We are so loved.  And nothing can ever separate us from that, not anything that is known or unknown by another person place or thing (Romans 8:38-39).   

2. Secondly:  Thankfulness. 

The Bible says that our minds are to be steadfast on thankfulness.  Thankfulness is the joy of everything living.  It’s the affection of life.  I know, our mind, when we hear this we might hear a  familiar replay in our mind like:  “Yeah, but can we reeeeaaally be thankful aaaallll the tiiime??”  This is a lie that doesn't come from you.  Just dismiss it.   Hebrews 13:15 reads, “Through Him, therefore, let us CONSTANTLY and at all times offer up to God a sacrifice of praise, which is the fruit of lips that thankfully acknowledge and confess and glorify His name.”  Here, "let us" implies that it is our decision.  Here’s something that I found: we can be joyful (read: James 1) 

Personally, my biggest lesson is to think of others always with gratitude, see them successful, wish the best of and for each human being, with thanksgiving, think of them with the highest expectations.  This, like lifting weights, takes time, but just with anything, with practice, it will get better and better!  My prayer is that we may practice this today.