It’s true, you know – it depends on our perspective – it affects everything about how we react and interact with (fill in the blank)! And sometimes this is overly influenced by our mood. And our mood is greatly influenced by what we do first thing in the morning. Personally, I’m a slow waker-upper. I like to gently ease into the day. But I also want the first words that come from my mouth be words of praise, of gratitude to the Lord. And that, my friend is something we have total control over. It may take some training but we can begin the day praising the Lord. And when we do, this influences how we begin our day. And how we begin our day influences how we respond to the challenges and opportunities in our day.
I doubt that I would get many detractors to this view… but how many of us are willing to renew our minds, train ourselves to begin our day with the Lord? I can assure you that the benefits far outweigh the time it takes to train ourselves. Then again… whoever said that being a Christian was a cake walk? Actually, Jesus told us:
“I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have [perfect] peace. In the world you have tribulation and distress and suffering, but be courageous [be confident, be undaunted, be filled with joy]; I have overcome the world.” [My conquest is accomplished, My victory abiding.]” (John 16:33, AMP)
Back to how we begin our day. When we begin with our minds on the Lord and all He does for us then this verse can also affect how we responds to attacks.
The New Living Bible states the last sentence in John 16 even stronger – “I have power over the world!” ‘Overcome’ is a great word but ‘power over’ leaves no room for doubt or question. There’s no equivocating the previous description of the world – you have power, have overcome. [Caveat: sometimes Christians seem to have the misguided opinion that the moment you choose to become a Christian that all trouble, grief, threats, attacks, etc. cease. Not. Wrong perspective. Actually you now have a very large target on your back and that our adversary, the devil, tries to derail us. And at the first sign of attack we discover who we really are.]
Perspective is very crucial, and personal – I doubt you are even able to go contrary to your perspective. And yet… you can change it. But it is your decision. As you open yourself to the Holy Spirit in you and grow in your trust and obedience to the Lordship of Jesus, you will increase your understanding, commitment, and confidence.
