Attitude

Sometimes I put a cyber "signature" on my emails. A signature is a few words or an image that automatically attaches to every outgoing message. Oftentimes, my signature serves as a little reminder to my soul, like this one from a while back.

Sometimes my signature is just a little piece of something to bring a smile, both to me and to the recipient, like these samples from past seasons:

Recently I’ve been thinking about how much a little change in attitude can make a big change in my day or my perception of the world. A yucky job becomes tolerable, or maybe even pleasant, when I change my thinking. A difficult person can become an object of my compassion rather than recipient of my ire, and suddenly my knotted, hard heart is free. I am thrilled when I remember that my own thoughts, rather than my circumstances or other people’s actions, are the key to my joy. And that I can control my own thoughts.

This is not a new concept. Two thousand years ago, the apostle Paul wrote of “bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ”. It takes effort to bring something into captivity – captives don’t choose that role for themselves – but I’m finding that a little effort returns very large dividends in the peace of my soul. As a reminder, I’ve got a new email signature:
Chuck Swindoll fleshed out the thought in a way that is worth reading—click here. Take a minute and a half to read his words now; then ponder and tuck them away. If you pull them out in the midst of your next struggle, you may be able to set sail for a better place.