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.
How did you respond to that goal?
What is your attitude toward that goal?
Do you feel that it is a ridiculous goal? do you think it is reachable?
Have you allowed that idea to slip into the garbage bin of your mind or do you pray for it daily with a positive purpose in mind.
When you talk to people about the church do you describe the church as having some crazy idea or do you speak enthusiastically about what we are trying to accomplish?
Do you believe that a youth minister is a ridiculous idea and state that we only have a handful of youth. Or do you see endless possibilities for ministry, growth and outreach?
How good is your attitude about the worship time. Is it a wasted hour on Sunday morning or is it one of the most beneficial things you participate in every week? Is there someplace you would rather be or have you made a conscious commitment to be here every week?
What is your attitude about giving: The church will misuse my money or wouldn’t make the same financial decisions that I would? Or God is going to bless this church and allow his spirit to run freely through this place.
What is your attitude like around other people
What does your attitude reflect about your desire to serve and become involved in an area of ministry.
What does your attitude tell others about your Job
As Followers of Jesus our attitude needs to be the same as that of Jesus
So does your attitude say win or does it say lose?
Continually find the positive
There’s a story about a child psychologist who wanted to observe how different children respond to negative circumstances.
They got a room and filled it with horse manure. Putting the pessimistic child in there, they observed how he responded.
Predictably, he whined and cried, and despaired that he was in a room full of smelly manure.
They put the other child in there, and the little guy started tearing around the room, digging in the manure with an excitement that baffled the onlookers.
After a few moments of watching this, they asked him why he was so excited.
He replied, “With all this manure in the room, there’s got to be a pony in here somewhere!”
Being a follower of Jesus means finding opportunity in every situation.
C. Keep the goal in sight
Throw off everything that hinders
Internal and external Hindrances
The word for this is more accurately described as trapped
SIN
Sin destroys the bible say that the wages of sin is death
Negativity
Break away from the traps that prevent progress
A survey asked mothers to keep track of how many times they made negative, compared with positive, comments to their children. They admitted that they criticized ten times for every time they said something favorable.
A three-year survey in one city’s schools found that the teachers were 75% negative. The study indicated that it takes four positive statements from a teacher to offset the effects of one negative statement to a child.
I’m not talking about discipline the bible is very clear that discipline is good. But there is a difference between positive and negative spirit stomping. Children need positive experiences to occur in their development. Children need to grow up thinking they are valuable worthwhile and can accomplish anything that they desire to do, if they work hard and maintain a positive attitude.
A negative spirit is a wet blanket on a warm fire.
So the author of this book says “get away from what is holding you back.
2. Work with patient persistence
A. Stick with the plan
Dr. Patrick J Cohn Says that there are 3 keys to playing strategic golf
(1) study the course
(2) make a game plan
(3) carry out the game plan.
We have to study the course if we are going to make progress, we should know where the sand traps are and where the water is but we also need to know where the flag is
Two pals are sitting in a pub watching the eleven-o’clock news. A report comes on about a man threatening to jump from the 20th floor of a downtown building. One friend turns to the other and says, "I’ll bet you ten bucks the guy doesn’t jump."
"It’s a bet," agrees his buddy.
A few minutes later, the man on the ledge jumps, so the loser hands his pal a $10 bill. "I can’t take your money," his friend admits. "I saw him jump earlier on the six-o’clock news."
"Me, too," say the other buddy. "But I didn’t think he’d do it again!"
We have to learn from our past but we also have to find a way to win in the future
In his book Fuzzy Memories, Jack Handey writes: There used to be this bully who would demand my lunch money every day. Since I was smaller, I would give it to him. Then I decided to fight back. I started taking karate lessons. But then the karate lesson guy said I had to start paying him five dollars a lesson. So I just went back to paying the bully.
I believe that the author of this text would say “that if you don’t learn form the past you will most certainly repeat it.”
Hudson Taylor said ”We can make our best plans and try to carry them out in our own strength. Or we can make careful plans and ask God to bless them. "Yet another way of working is to begin with God; to ask His plans, and to offer ourselves to Him to carry out His purposes."
Proverbs 16:9 “In his heart a man plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps.”
One day a farmer’s donkey fell down into a well. The animal cried piteously for hours as the farmer tried to figure out what to do. Finally he decided the animal was old and the well needed to be covered up anyway, it just wasn’t worth it to retrieve the donkey So he invited all his neighbors to come over and help him. They all grabbed a shovel and began to shovel dirt into the well. At first, the donkey realized what was happening and cried horribly. Then, to everyone’s amazement, he quieted down. A few shovel loads later, the farmer finally looked down the well and was astonished at what he saw. With every shovel of dirt that hit his back, the donkey was doing something amazing. He would shake it off and take a step up. As the farmer’s neighbors continued to shovel dirt on top of the animal, he would shake it off and take a step up. Pretty soon, everyone was amazed as the donkey stepped up over the edge of the well and trotted off!
We must be willing to shake ourselves off and continue upward
B. Be patient with God’s timing
Phillip Brooks, a famous pastor of the last century, was in his office, pacing the floor, frustrated. Somebody walked in and saw him and asked, "What’s the matter, pastor?"
He said, "I’m in a hurry and God isn’t!"
Have you ever felt like you were in a hurry but God wasn’t?
All to often in the church idleness is mistaken for patience. We are really waiting for a day when God gives us a vision but what happens in the meantime?
Unamuno, the Spanish philosopher, tells about the Roman aqueduct at Segovia, in his native Spain. It was built in 109 AD For eighteen hundred years, it carried cool water from the mountains to the hot and thirsty city. Nearly sixty generations of men drank from its flow.
Then came another generation, a recent one, who said, "This aqueduct is so great a marvel that it ought to be preserved for our children, as a museum piece. We shall relieve it of its centuries-long labor." They did; they laid modern iron pipes. They gave the ancient bricks and mortar a reverent rest. And the aqueduct began to fall apart. The sun beating on the dry mortar caused it to crumble. The bricks and stone sagged and threatened to fall. What ages of service could not destroy idleness disintegrated.
We cannot mistake idleness for patience. There is a strong need to keep the vision and plan God has given us. When the time is right we will then add another layer to the building that God wants to construct.
In the meantime we should keep plugging away continue to serve we have to work with perseverance and still wait for God to show us another goal.
C. Don’t listen to negative influences
It’s so easy to criticize. A farmer’s neighbor was so negative, criticizing everything and anything. The farmer bought a new plow, the neighbor said it would rust soon. The farmer remarked how it was good to have more rain this year, and the neighbor lamented that his crops would rot at the root with all this rain. It went on ad nauseam.
The farmer determined he would find something to cheer up this bottomless pit of despair. He went out and purchased the finest hunting dog, and secretly trained him to fetch by walking on the water, instead of swimming.
When hunting season came the farmer invited his sour neighbor to go with him. When the first flock passed by, the farmer and his friend shot several ducks each. The farmer yelled to the dog, Fetch! The hound darted, his feet barely skimming the surface of the lake. He scooped up four ducks from the water and was back in an instant, dry as a bone. How ’bout THAT? questioned the farmer. Remarked ol’ sourpuss, Cain’t swim, can he?
Negative attitudes can destroy the healthiest church.
This attitude can rob leaders of their joy and drain the fun out of fellowship.
They sabotage a willingness to serve and cut the throat of communication.
3. Anticipate plentiful progress
A. Expect great results
In the course of their conversation at a dinner party, Albert Einstein’s young neighbor asked the white-haired scientist, "What are you actually by profession?"
"I devote myself to the study of physics," Einstein replied.
The girl looked at him in astonishment. "You mean to say you study physics at your age?" she exclaimed. "I finished mine a year ago."
When Pablo Casals reached 95, a young reported threw him a question: "Mr. Casals, you are 95 and the greatest cellist that ever lived. Why do you still practice six hours a day?" And Mr. Casals answered, "Because I think I’m making progress."
So as a follower of Jesus you need to keep worshipping
Keep being faithful, Keep learning, and keep serving.
You have to believe that every day progress is being made
An interesting cartoon shows a fourth-grade boy standing toe-to-toe and nose-to-nose with his teacher. Behind them stares a blackboard covered with math problems the boy hasn’t finished. With rare perception the boy says, "I’m not an underachiever, you’re an overexpecter!"
You need to become an overexpecter.
The work of Japanese painter Hokusai spanned many years before his death in 1849 at age 89. But toward the end of his life, the artist dismissed as nothing all the work he had done before age 50. It was only after he reached 70 that he felt he was turning out anything worthy of note. On his deathbed Hokusai lamented, "If heaven had granted me five more years, I could have become a real painter."
We should greatly anticipate what God wants to do with us
B. Expect meaningful results
