I have found that us good Christian people will usually not do the outward bad things as much... but we struggle more with our attitudes and thoughts.
Lately, I have been coming up with ways to change a wrong attitude into a good one. And I thought I'd share them with you all. (I really don't know how many of you there are... it's a mystery to me whether anyone reads it or not. Unless, of course, you comment. Hint, hint. ;)
Anyhow, an attitude that comes up frequently in a... well, a largeish family (I do not consider 7 children to be a large family) is impatience. *gasp* Carissa gets impatient?!? Um, yes. But lately, when I feel that impatience beginning to rise, I have been saying to myself, "Carissa, God has been so very patient and merciful to you. Surely you can be patient with Matthew while he doesn't listen to you right away." (or something like that) And it really does help.
Another thing is that I am not always particularly thrilled with what I have just been asked to do. Like putting away laundry when I wanted to go do something else. (I know, shocking. :) But then I thought, What can I be thankful for about this job? Well, firstly, I am thankful that we have clothes for me to put away. I am also thankful that I have such a nice papa to tell me to put them away. And I am thankful that I have siblings to put clothes away for. And so on. It helps!
Well, now you know a few of the things I sometimes do to change my attitude. Do you all have any things similar things that you do? Maybe you could comment and share them with the rest of us. Just an idea... :)
Hello, fellow rebelutionary! How are you? I am just wonderfully blessed by a wonderful God!
ReplyDeleteYou do not consider 7 to be a large family???? Why ever not? I have 5 siblings of my own... and I think of ours as a moderately large family... though we certainly know many people who have twice as many, if not more! How many siblings do you have?
I sure can relate to that patience thing. I don't think a day goes by when I don't get frustrated or loose my well-practiced cool when things don't go the way I had planned... I like the suggestions that you wrote. Another thing that I do is try and really examine the situation and see how idiotic my getting upset about it is... once I do see all I feel is silly and childish :) .
Anyway, it was nice reading your post! Hope to stop by again soon!
Blessings!
--Sarah
I can relate as well!!
ReplyDeleteI've found another helpful attitude-changer for me is constant Bible memorization. When I'm repeating to myself Scripture, I get it stuck in my head and am then thinking about God's Word a lot more. Then, if I'm thinking about God's Word more, it always changes my attitude! :)
Greetings Carissa,
ReplyDeleteI do read your articles, and you know I read them, but I want to comment anyways. :) I like talking...
Impatience is one of my main problems too (go figure), and I am just learning ways to combat it. One thing that I do is sing. I sing hymns, psalms, etc., and it really makes a difference. Of course, my family is not always very happy about it (just kidding, they are because they sing along, but maybe it is to frown me out... hmmm...).
Thanks for this reminder to strive for patience!
With joy and peace in Christ,
Jay Lauser aka Sir Emeth Mimetes
Hi Sarah Jean!!
ReplyDeleteI am doing great!
Well, I do think 7 is pretty big, just not large. :) It was the average family size in America... a long time ago. (Don't ask me the exact date :) I am one of the seven, so I have 6 siblings.
Thanks for stopping by and commenting! I hope to "see" you again soon.
God bless,
Carissa
Hi Joanna!
ReplyDeleteThanks for commenting again!
That is a great tip. I haven't been doing so good with sitting down and memorizing scripture, but I still have so much in my head just from reading it and hearing it that it does help. I am sure if I actually was memorizing some every day it would be even better. It is so very helpful to have scripture in your head, isn't it? I was thinking about that this morning. :)
Have a great day!
In Christ,
Carissa
Jay,
ReplyDeleteThank you for commenting anyway. :)
Well, of course you would struggle with it too. :)
Singing... that is good. I usually think of singing to cheer me up. I don't think I've thought of it for helping me to be more patient. That is a good idea.
:) (smiling at the last bit)
You are welcome. It's not really from me, though... I can't take the credit. You know what I mean.
In Him,
Carissa aka Duchess Daisy
Well, I must admit I was rather shocked to come on here and see THREE comments. Thank you all! :)
ReplyDeleteI laughed when I saw all the Cafe Leaders posting.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the reminder to be thankful. At the moment I am trying to regularly remind myself of Philipians 2:14-17.
Hi Felicity,
ReplyDeleteAs I said, I am glad I joined the cafe leader's group. :D
You are welcome! Yes, that is a great passage.The whole book of Philippians is great. :)
Thanks for the comment!
In His love,
Carissa
First of all, I can't figure out how to comment on this thing. It's easier on your other blog. I'm really not up to date on all this internet chatting business. Anway, excellent post. I also use the "thankful" method to help me. The Bible does not say that we must be thankful "for everything," but it does say that we must be thankful "in everything." No matter what situation we are in, from the smallest irritation to the hardest trial, there is always something to be thankful for. God's faithfulness, love, holiness, etc., etc. remain the same in every circumstance, so if nothing else, we can give thanks simply for who God is. As for the small irritations, though, I do find it very helpful to try to focus on the many blessings involved, like you were talking about. It really does help one to have a positive attitude. (Not that I am an expert in this area-I need tons more work on it!) I also like your first suggestion-considering all that God has done for you. I mostly have used that when I'm trying to forgive someone-I guess it's pretty much all the same thing. You were, in reality, needing to forgive Matthew for not listening to you. Well, I hope all that made some small bit of sense! Sometimes I find it difficult to put my thoughts down in a clear manner. :)
ReplyDeleteHope you're doing well.
Love,
your friend,
Beka
Hi Beka!
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, thank you for all of your comments. It is nice to have you for a friend. :) Secondly, you are right, google comments are harder. And I am glad you figured it out. :)
And your comment made perfect sense. At least, to me. And I know you really well...
Just kidding, I'm sure others will get it too. :)
Thank you for your additions!
With Love, your friend,
Carissa
By the way, this is new record for comments for me-- 11 on one post. :D