ALWAYS HAVE A GOOD ATTITUDE

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“Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.”

Matthew 15:28

There is no greater distress than that of a mother who feels unable to do something for her son or daughter. In such desperation, she forgets about pride or cowardice, she doesn’t cling to any tradition, but simply does whatever it takes to get the miracle her child needs. This was the case of a woman who did not belong to the people of Israel. She knew there was a barrier between the Jews and the Canaanites. However, in her nation there wasn’t anyone able to help her, so she decided to put everything at risk when she cried out to Jesus, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is demon-possessed and suffering terribly” (Matthew 15:22). Apparently, Jesus listened to her with patience because she had been unable to move the disciples’ hearts, and they told Jesus, “Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us.” The Lord’s answer was emphatic: “I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.” The woman did not give up despite Jesus’ indifference, but decided to do something even bolder; she came and knelt before him. “Lord, help me!” she said. But the Lord’s answer could have discouraged her even more, since He told her, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.” The woman could have leapt up in anger and yelled at Jesus and His disciples, however her response surprised everybody, when in humility she said, “I accept I’m like a little dog, but at least let me have the crumbs that will be enough for my daughter to be healed.” When Jesus heard those words He was moved and He said, “Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.” And her daughter was healed at that moment” (Matthew 15:28b).

Every person who desires to be successful in life must maintain a high level of faith, without becoming discouraged just because of the circumstances. Through faith this woman could relate to God and to His Kingdom. She believed that even the crumbs that fell from the Savior’s table were enough to break the curse that was on her daughter. Jesus makes note of her as one of the few women of the Bible who had great faith. This made her a conqueror in every thing she desired.

SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT
Someone once told this story about a man called Luke. Luke was always in a good mood and had always something positive to say. If someone asked him how it was going, he would answer, “If I could be better, I would have a twin brother.” He was a one-of-a-kind manager because his waitresses had followed him from restaurant to restaurant. The reason this happened was because of his attitude. He was a natural encourager. If an employee had a bad day, Luke was there to tell him how to focus on the positive side of the situation. One day I asked him, “I don’t understand. It’s not possible to be a positive person all the time, how do you do it?” He answered, “Every morning I wake up and say to myself, ‘Luke, you have two choices today, you can choose to be in a good mood or you can choose to be in a bad mood. I choose to be in a good mood.’ Every time something bad happens I can choose to be a victim or to learn something from it. I choose to learn. Every time somebody comes with complaints I can accept those complaints or I can show him the positive side of life. I choose to show him the positive side of life. Everything in life has to do with choices. When you take away all the external influences you realize every situation is a choice. You choose the way that you will react to each situation. You choose how people will affect your mood. You choose to be in a good mood or in a bad mood. In short, YOU CHOOSE HOW TO LIVE YOUR LIFE.” Some years later I found out that Luke did something you must never do if you own a store. He left the back door unlocked, and one in the morning three thieves with weapons attacked him. While Luke was trying to open the safe box, his hand slipped from the knob because he was nervous. The thieves panicked and shot him. Luke was rushed to hospital. After an eighteen-hour surgery and weeks in the ICU he was discharged. He still had bullet fragments in his body. Six months later I met him and I asked him how it was going, and he answered, “If I could be better, I would have a twin brother.” I asked him what was going through his mind when he was being attacked? “The first thing that came to my mind was that I should have locked the back door. I remembered I had two options, I could choose to live or I could choose to die. I chose to live.” I asked him if he was afraid and he said, “The Doctors were great. They didn’t stop telling me I would be fine. But when they took me into the operating theater I saw their facial expressions and I was scared. I could read in their eyes, ‘This is a dead man!’ I knew I had to make a decision. One of the doctors asked me if I was allergic to anything and with a deep breath I shouted, ‘Yes, to bullets!’ While they were laughing I told them, “I’m choosing to live, do that surgery as if I was alive, not dead.” Luke survived due to the mastery of the doctors, but above all due to his awesome attitude. (Anonymous)

TODAY’S DECLARATION
“I grabbed hold of Jesus as my only salvation, my faith grew stronger. I stayed firm in the midst of circumstances, and I h ave received His blessing.”

Today’s post is an excerpt from Pastor Cesar Castellanos’ book, Declarations of Power for 365 Days of the Year: Volume Three.

TODAY’S BIBLE READING

    • Old Testament: Isaiah 34-36; Proverbs 24:23-34
    • New Testament: Luke 22:63-71; Hebrews 8:1-6

ALWAYS HAVE A GOOD ATTITUDE