Making a Fresh Start Series
Making Positive Changes in Our Lives
(I am a big John Maxwell fan. His books and seminars have provided me with a lot of the philosophies contained in this message along with inspiration from successful people that have mentored me in life. I have tried to give proper credit for direct quotes used in this message. I apologize for any that may be used from memory and not cited.)
We began this series telling you that we would try to show you how to get your life un-stuck if you felt like you were stuck. Tonight we conclude the series with some practical advice and hopefully some tools to help you pull it all together and make a fresh start with Jesus.
Wouldn’t you like to wake up every day with an excited attitude – anxiously looking forward to what the day holds in store?
Instead of beginning the day expecting to do the same old routine, why not make a change in your routine that refreshes your body, mind and spirit?
2 Cor. 5:13If we are out of our mind, it is for the sake of God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. 14For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. 15And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.
16So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. 17Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!
Too often we go through our day with “stinkin’ thinkin’.” We let negative people and negative thoughts control how we feel and act. We fall into this trap most often because we feed it. We feed it by consistently surrounding ourselves with what I call “Negative Ninnies and Nincompoops”.
What is a negative ninny or a nincompoop? Webster’s defines a ninny and a nincompoop as a fool or simpleton, one lacking common sense.
People that don’t know they don’t know are all too often the ones we are listening to. Look at an example of this in the OT:
Deut 1:8
8 See, I have given you this land. Go in and take possession of the land that the LORD swore he would give to your fathers — to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob — and to their descendants after them."
19 Then, as the LORD our God commanded us, we set out from Horeb and went toward the hill country of the Amorites through all that vast and dreadful desert that you have seen, and so we reached Kadesh Barnea. 20 Then I said to you, "You have reached the hill country of the Amorites, which the LORD our God is giving us. 21 See, the LORD your God has given you the land. Go up and take possession of it as the LORD, the God of your fathers, told you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged."
26 But you were unwilling to go up; you rebelled against the command of the LORD your God. 27 You grumbled in your tents and said, "The LORD hates us; so he brought us out of Egypt to deliver us into the hands of the Amorites to destroy us. 28 Where can we go? Our brothers have made us lose heart. They say, ’The people are stronger and taller than we are; the cities are large, with walls up to the sky. We even saw the Anakites there.’"
As Moses is recounting the history of Israel in this first sermon to the next generation he details this 11 day journey from Horeb to Kadesh-Barnea. Upon arrival at Kadesh-Barnea, the very threshold of God’s promise, The people sent spies in to survey the land.
Instead of listening to Moses’ encouragement to go in and possess the land, they listened to the Negative Ninnies and Nincompoops and missed the opportunity.
How many dreams have you had flushed away because someone told you it was impossible or was crazy.
Quickly, I want to describe to you four kinds of Negative Ninnies and nincompoops that you should avoid:
1. The Alarmist – motivated by fear and exaggerate the risks
2. The Traditionalist – doesn’t like change. Motivated by custom and routine.
3. The Defeatist – Always see the problems
4. The Antagonist – fear that they will lose control and will try to stand in your way.
I believe God wants to do something special in your life that will bless you and bring Him glory. You stand at the threshold with a choice. Are there people around you that are telling you it’s too hard? Or, perhaps they’re telling you that you aren’t qualified enough and that you will fail.
You need to change the way you are thinking. In order to make a positive change in your life you need to tell yourself these three things:
• Change is personal – I need to change
• Change is possible – I’m able to change
• Change is profitable – I’ll be rewarded for change (Thinking for a Change – John C. Maxwell p. 29)
Let me share with you some practical tools that will help you make a positive change in your life:
1. Make a positive change in body.
When we are physically run down it limits our ability to do all the things for God that we’d like to do. I’ve shared with you before that our bodies are the temple of God. Too often we treat it like a tent. Why not commit to making a positive change in your physical body. Eat healthy. Maintain a nutritious diet. One of my biggest issues is not what I eat, but how much I eat. If you eat 4000 calories of healthy food, it still turns to fat. A lot of leading nutritionists recommend “grazing” through your day. Eat several small meals a day instead of “feasting” at the end of the day. Use portion controls to monitor your calorie intake. Measure your portions by the size of your fist. Use smaller plates to eat on. Drink more water. Spice up your food. All these things help you control the amount of food you eat.
Begin an exercise discipline. Establish a set time and place that you focus on getting some exercise. If you’re not in the habit of exercising now, begin by taking a short walk everyday. Join a health club or exercise program. Get a workout buddy – it builds accountability.
Set goals for yourself that stretch you beyond your comfort zone, but is still achievable. Maybe it isn’t a weight goal or even inches lost. Maybe at first it’s just to walk around the block.
Don’t put it off, begin today to change your body if it is not as fit as God would have it to be.
Of course, you need to take your current health into consideration before you begin any diet or exercise program and you need to talk to your doctor if you feel like you have some health concerns.
2. Make a positive change in mind.
The biggest hindrance to making positive changes in our lives comes in the 5 inches between our ears. We blow it in our brains before we ever blow it with our actions. In order to make a positive change in our life we must change our minds.
Romans 12:2 Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
It is the pattern and practice of this world to bum you out! The world wants to drag you down into negative thinking. Change it by refusing to be influenced by negativity. Be a harbinger of positive influence. Let others see the possibilities in Christ through you! The old hymn says, “Make me a blessing to someone today.”
How do you do that?
Begin a discipline of ingesting good things and good influences. That entails the people you hang out with, the books you read and what you watch on TV. Avoid the negative stuff and replace it with positive influences.
Next, stay focused on the things that really matter. Negative Ninnies and Nincompoops will try to pull you away from the “Main Event” of your day and your life. You must keep your focus on the big picture. I put reminders all around me about my purpose and focus. What you focus on grows. Put notes to yourself in the car, on the fridge on your bathroom mirror that remind you to stay focused. “The person that forgets the ultimate becomes a slave to the immediate.” (Thinking for a Change - John C. Maxwell)
Every day, determine what your main event for the day is – that one thing in your day that must be done well. That one thing that will make or break your day. Keep focused on that big event of your day and don’t let anything distract you from it.
Reawaken your sense of excitement by thinking outside the box. Get creative in the way you look at things. Ask the “what if” questions. Get really weird about how you would solve a problem or approach a situation. It may cause you to see opportunities you would have otherwise missed. When I spend time being creative it opens my eyes to the newness God has in store for me. It wakes up my senses and gives me a feeling of joy.
We spoke last week about 365 days of Possibilities. That’s another way we can make a change in our minds. Re-energize yourself with possibility thinking. When your days begin to feel like a rut, nothing re-energizes your brain like thinking about new possibilities. All of a sudden you begin to think with a revitalized energy that you hadn’t experienced in awhile. Think about possibilities and you will change the way your mind has been working.
3. Make a positive change in spirit.
I know Jesus said, blessed are those that are poor in spirit, but I don’t think He meant for us to actively seek to be downtrodden.
Sometimes circumstances bring us to a point where we don’t feel upbeat and chipper inside. We may even feel depressed.
If we know Christ as Lord, then we also know the Holy Comforter. We can rejoice in spirit because the Holy Spirit dwells within. I believe that we can make a change in spirit if we indulge ourselves on the things of God. If you want to make a change in your spirit, what do should you do?
Let me share with you the top 5 things that will help you make a positive change in spirit:
Get in God’s Word – Daily time spent reading and meditating on God’s Word provides us with guidance, instruction, exhortation and comfort.
Pray – 1 Thessalonians tells us that we are to “pray without ceasing.” We should be men and women of prayer. That doesn’t mean that your prayers have to be long and filled with theological vocabulary. As the song said, “Let us have a little talk with Jesus.” I believe prayer changes things. Don’t you? I can feel down in spirit and then I begin to pray about whatever it is that is pulling me down and before I know it, I regain my confidence that God knows exactly what I’m going through and what I need.
Another way to change your spirit – be a servant. There’s something special about how serving someone else makes me feel. Spend some time serving the homeless and see if you don’t get blessed. Help a shut-in with their grocery shopping or doctor visits and gain a new appreciation for the independence you have by the grace of God.
If you want to change your spirit – Worship! Get to church and enjoy the fellowship and combined worship of other believers. The Bible teaches us to “not forsake the assembling of ourselves together,” “but to exhort one another: and so much the more, as you see the day approaching.” Spending time in worship and adoration of our wonderful Savior is a great way to lift your spirits and get focused on the eternal and not the temporary.
Finally, if you want to make a positive change in your spirit, take time to be thankful. Even when things seem to be really, really bad, if we take the time to contemplate all the good things God has done for us and begin to thank Him for them, then we will soon find ourselves on the mountain top again. The Apostle Paul found himself many times in desperate places and times, yet in all of that we constantly read of him being thankful to God and His wonderful mercy and grace.
Conclusion:
Most people tend to avoid change. It scares them a little. Change can be good if it’s a positive change. Why not commit yourself to making a positive change. The greatest positive change you could make is inviting Jesus into your heart. If you have never done that, I want to invite you to do it tonight. The song says, “What a wonderful change in my life has been wrought since Jesus came into my heart.” Why not experience that wonderful change that comes when you become a new creation in Jesus Christ?
