Being Positive in a Negative World
Tonight, I am going to speak to you about being and staying positive in a negative world.
It is very easy to see things that are wrong in the world. We don’t have to look far to see something negative in our lives, the lives of the people around us, our job, our city, state, nation and our world. We don’t have to seek out things to get discouraged about. We don’t have to look far to find someone without hope.
Why?
We live in a negative world.
I could spend an entire evening speaking about social injustice, bad politics, corruption in our government, our messed up judicial system, our sluggish economy. We could talk about parents who abuse their children, children who abuse their parents, lousy jobs, lazy people, uncaring people, drunk drivers, crime rates, and so on….
We live in a negative world.
Now, God sees everything that goes on here on Earth. He knows the people we live with, work with, the people we have to submit to on our job or who our leaders are.
Still his commandment to us is…..
In all things give thanks!
Rejoice in our circumstances.
He wants us to BE POSITIVE!
Speak Positive!
Why?
We are His children and he is in control.
What we don’t realize is that the bible says in Proverbs 18 vs 21 that Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and they who indulge in it shall eat the fruit of it. (for death or life)
SO
Are we talking ABOUT our mountains…or TO our Mountains!!
All of us have mountains…all of us have struggles. We all think our mountain is bigger, rockier, stormier, steeper, & more dangerous than our neighbors.
As we murmur and complain about our mountain we are in fact focusing on the mountain itself and it in our mind it grows so large we are convinced it will never be moved.
We need to focus on God and His power to move mountains.
Talking about your mountain will not bring it down.
We have already established the fact that he love us and has plans, purpose, and destiny for our lives. If you haven’t gotten that, then you need deliverance, because I have never been in a church where it was preached more often that God has a hope and a future for you.
Pastor Jeff and I have preached continuously that no matter what comes your way, God is in control and it will work out for your good. He sees the big picture, and it is alright!
Jeremiah 29 vs 11
So then why do we often speak so negatively?
First of all, we all fall into this trap at times. It is our human nature to spout off about our problems.
It is just plain easy to fall into the whining trap…
It is our nature
I think that there are many reasons why.
Sometimes we want sympathy.
Sometimes we want someone to see our struggle and respect us for “going on” despite our circumstances. “What a woman of GOD!” My my she can take all of that and still go on…..She must be SO SPIRITUAL!!!
Sometimes we just are so accustomed to complaining, we don’t even realize we are doing it. It becomes automatic.
Complaining is a sin!
It is a corrupt form of conversation that causes many people a great deal of problems in their lives.
Words are actually containers of power.
Death and Life are in the power of the tongue!
Complaining, grumbling words carry destructive power.
Complaining destroys joy! The joy of the lord is our strength!
No strength?….no joy? What are your lips speaking???
Complaints destroy the joy of the one doing the complaining and can also affect other people who have to listen to them.
Murmuring and complaining pollute our lives and probably sound like cursing to the Lord. Why? When we complain we are saying God is not powerful enough.
A person who complains is a person who is not thankful. Truly thankful people do not complain. They are too busy being grateful for the good things they do have. They have not have time to notice the things they could complain about.
The world is full of two forces, good and evil. The Bible teaches us that good overcomes evil. Romans 12:21
We must choose the good.
If we find ourselves faced with a negative situation, we can overcome that with GOOD! Overcome by speaking Positively!
Praise and thanksgiving are good.
Praise can become just as automatic if we submit to it.
Read Philippians 4:6
Being thankful shows maturity. It demonstrates that we are spiritually mature enough to handle any type of promotion or increase. If you cannot handle where you are now without complaining, why would God move you on???
Sometimes offering up thanksgiving to God through our troubles is a real sacrifice. We don’t want to.
It is easy to give up praise and thanksgiving if we have a reason, but then it is not a sacrifice. We should offer up thanksgiving all the time.
There are many things we take for granted because we have an abundance here in America.
Anyone ever travel outside America.
I sure have. I literally kissed the ground when I came home.
There are many things to be thankful for if we decide we are going to be a person who continually offers up thanksgiving. The flesh looks for things to complain about, but the spirit searches for reasons to give God glory.
Phil 2:14
I Thessa. 5:18
Ephesians 5:20
It greatly honors the Lord when we refuse to complain in a situation that in the natural would produce complaining.
It does not come automatically, but eventually I believe it will.
Closing
