By this point I am sure you are wondering where positive thinking comes in. I do very little in the blog world but one blog caught my attention this week. The basic premise of the blog is to point out what is wrong with ministries and churches in today´s world. There no encouraging or positive words spoken. It is all criticism and negative comments. The last time I checked on my own ministries I found things that were not right. None of us are perfect, we all sin, we all fail, we all have lapses in judgment. Wouldn´t God have us build each other up, rather then tear each other down? (1 Thessalonians 5:11) I know that there are times we all need to be corrected and God´s Word tells us that, but it must be done in love and with kindness. If we are filled with the Spirit, the fruits of the Spirit are evident in our lives. Therefore we should be dealing with others in love, with joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness and self-control. (Galatians 5:22) DoesnŐt that sound like God expects us to use positive words and not negative?
Some of you may be thinking... but what if someone is truly in the wrong? Don´t I have a responsibility to call them on it? You will need to get alone with God to determine what He wants from you, but I do know it is much easier to find fault with others and it takes effort to look for the positive. Doing what God has called us to do in the world is hard enough without picking fights among ourselves. We are all in this together. The Devil´s greatest triumph is to keep us divided. (Matthew 12:25) If we are fighting each other, who has time to worry about the world.
SCRIPTURE READING
Matthew 12:25, Galatians 5:13-26, 1 Thessalonians 5:11, Hebrews 3:12-13, Hebrews 10:24-25
BOTTOM LINE
The positive always repels the negative.