Positive Perserverance Prompts Prosperity

Positive Perseverance Prompts Prosperity

Hebrews 12:1-3

Eric A. Snyder, Minister

Farwell Church of Christ

October 28, 2001

Mike Ditka, New Orleans Saints football coach with a reputation for optimism, came into the locker room to give his team a pre-game pep talk.

"All right Boys!" he said, "here we are, unbeaten, untied and unscored upon - and ready for the first game of the season."

The anticipation was that now there are a bunch of people who want to see what you guys can do.

Hebrews 12:1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. 2 Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

Prayer

I read about a schoolboy who brought home his report card. It was heavy with poor grades. "What have you to say about this?" asked his father. "One thing for sure," the boy replied, "Dad, you can be proud. You know I haven’t been cheating!"

Find something to be excited about

1. Look ahead with positive purpose

A. Look forward

They once asked Barry Sanders, what is your goal when you run the ball. Barry said every time I run the ball I keep my eyes on the endzone If I ever look anywhere else I will fail.

We need to look forward to where God has asked us to go.

If we look anywhere else we will fail

Lee de Forest, 1926, inventor of the cathode ray tube.

Theoretically, television may be feasible, but I consider it an impossibility--a development which we should waste little time dreaming about.

Thomas J. Watson, 1943, Chairman of the Board of IBM.

I think there is a world market for about five computers.

Recording company expert, 1962.

We don’t think the Beatles will do anything in their market. Guitar groups are on their way out.

All of these people were left behind because that had no vision for the future. The bible reminds us that “where there is no vision the people parish”

We must not forget the prosperous promises He has made or the Positive possibilities he has shown

Henry Kissinger, former Secretary of State, Jan. 9, 1989.

More than at any time in history, mankind faces a crossroads--one path leading to despair and utter hopelessness, the other leading to total destruction. Let us pray we have the wisdom to choose correctly.

Today in the life of this church more than any other time in history we are faces with a crossroads, one path leading to prosperity and another leading to a slow deterioration. Let us pray we have the wisdom to chose correctly.

Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God.

Corrie Ten Boom a holocaust survivor.

So you may have set your clocks back but your eyes still need to look forward.

What do you see when you look forward?

B. Maintain a positive attitude

Maintaining a positive attitude is a key to success,

Your attitude is an inward feeling which is expressed by your behavior.

Parents are called to a meeting at their child’s class. The issue their 5th grade child is causing disturbances in the class and grades are low. The aptitude tests show that the child has the capabilities yet he is still failing miserably. The teacher suggests that the child has a bad attitude

We talk about attitudes every day. The truth is some of the greatest people in the world have had incredible attitudes, and some of the same people have had incredible deficiencies and handicaps as well.

So as a church we may have some wonderful tools but if we maintain a lousy attitude we will fail. On the other hand we may not have every tool we would like but if we nurture an attitude of winning, God is sure to bless the efforts.

We need to grasp this concept

“My attitude dictates my performance”

Lou Holtz head coach at SC said

“Ability is what you’re capable of doing.

Motivation determines what you do.

Attitude determines how well you do it”

John Maxwell recalls playing a high school basketball team that was not having a good season. One day the coach held a team meeting and said “fellows your abilities say win but your attitudes say lose.”

What does your attitude say?

A few weeks ago I stood up here and shared that I believed that if we would devote ourselves to prayer that this building could be contain over 100 people 2 more times by the end of this year.