BE-ATTITUDES

“What are you going to be for Halloween?” Every third grader was asked that question last week for this very day. I would like to ask, “What are you going To Be?”

We know that the forms of the verb “to be” are: I am; You are; He/She/It is; We are; You are; They are. From Matthew 5, we read that Jesus gave nine attitudes of the faithful. I will list three here so you can get the flavor of his words. Please read them all in Matthew 5. 3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. Did you notice? It isn’t Blessed are those who wish to be poor in spirit; Blessed are those who might mourn; or Blessed are those who become meek . . . They already ARE (a form of the verb “to be”).

From Jesus.org we learn that Blessed means: “It is self-contained, meaning that regardless of what is happening to us externally, we can be truly happy internally. We can be genuinely blessed as followers of Jesus Christ.”

To have a Be-Attitude, we must seek first the presence of God and the Holy Spirit in our lives, and the saving power of Jesus Christ, THEN we will have the attitudes of a Christian believer. We never seek first to own the kingdom of heaven, or receive comfort as in free from care, or to inherit the earth. First, we pray for the Christian Be-Attitudes and all else follows. When we have an attitude of being Christian, not speaking Christianity, or faking Christianity, then all these things will be our blessing. No matter what happens to us, we will be happy in the Lord inside. Let us pray:

“Father God, Abba-Daddy to our Savior Jesus, we are amazed by your blessings! We ask this very moment that your Holy Spirit come and make its home in our lives. Fill us to overflowing with your presence that we may Be Christ-filled. Forgive us when we have had the Be-Not attitude of seeking our own best interest first. Today—we choose You. Today—we choose to follow Jesus. Today—we welcome the indwelling Holy Spirit in our lives. Today, we choose a Be-Attitude. For all these blessings, we pray in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen”
Doris
“God gives us stories that testify to His love. Let me tell you mine.”
Copyright 2011 Doris Gaines Rapp, Ph.D.