Life’s disappointments can cause you to see everything in life (including your future) from a negative perspective. You express hopelessness, belittle your own abilities and complain about life’s unfairness. As Pastor Bob Gass says: “Do you recognize any of these attitudes in yourself?!”
Dr. Paul Meier, a Christian therapist, wrote, “Attitudes are nothing more than habits of thought… and habits can be acquired. An action repeated becomes an attitude realized.” What can we gather from this? It means that with practice, you can develop an Overcomer’s Attitude! Bob Gass suggests some ways we can accomplish this:
1) “Be honest about your quest to conquer pessimism. Give someone you respect the permission to point out when you are being negative.
2) Limit your exposure to negative input. Since you become like the company you keep, look for people who fortify your faith and not feed your fears.”
3) Volunteer to serve others who are less fortunate. Serving creates positive feelings and gives you a sense of value.
4) Look for the good in every situation and always express faith that it’s there!”
President Harry Truman is quoted as saying that “A pessimist is one who makes difficulties of his opportunities and an optimist is one who makes opportunities of his difficulties.” Which way you go is based on the choice you make.
