Christian Attitude

As I have been reflecting and contemplating on my life I have begun to meditate on the decisions that I have made. Some of my decisions were not good but all of them have helped me become a better person in regards to my personal life, my job, my relationships, and fulfilling my goals. I recently made a decision to further my walk as a Christian of excellence by returning to school. On the first day of class my professor quoted a scripture that says "I do not consider, brethren that I have captured and made it my own [yet]; but one thing I do [it is my one aspiration]: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the [supreme and heavenly] prize to which God in Christ Jesus is calling us upward" (Philippians 3:13-14 The Amplified Bible, 1987). This scripture laid a foundation for me to move forward and awakened my spirit to move forward. Now I have determined to focus on my goal which is to finish school by achieving a bachelor's degree and this is just one part of my journey because it will commence yet again.

My daily routine consists of going to work, which is something that I look forward to every morning. I try to keep my eyes focused on God in everything I do, so that I remember to thank the Lord each morning for another glorious day. I thank God for his understanding and improvement in me as I ask him to direct me in the path of uprightness today. Some mornings I think, "I wish I can just lie in the bed, or I wish I wasn't at work today, or I don't want to be here today", I have to remind myself of the bible verse that says "…walk [live and conduct your selves] in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to Him and desiring to please Him in all things, bearing fruit in every good work and steadily growing and increasing in and by the knowledge of God [with fuller, deeper and clearer insight, acquaintance, and recognition]" (Colossians 1:10 The Amplified Bible, 1987). This word changes my mood and reminds me that the center of attention is not about me but on my purpose, which is doing the will of God. Reminding myself of this verse helps me to establish an appreciation for my daylight hours of work.

As I positively meditate on work the thing that comes to mind is that I am blessed to be able to assist people in obtaining their requests. I go with the mind that I will be able to help someone today. Whether it is my boss, a customer, a co-worker, a person on the street that I see at lunch time; I know that my purpose is to represent God in everything that I do. Truly I think that if I can serve someone, whether they are less fortunate or not, with a smile or a kind word, I have fulfilled my purpose before God. Just helping someone meet deadlines I know that I have done an excellent job and completed my objective for the day. It's like what Oosting (2003) said, "God must be the primary focus of your life. Your principles are based upon the quality of this focus all behavior must be measured against God's standards" (p. 109). When I encounter anyone at work I am completely focused on walking in godliness towards every one that I come into contact with. I do this by letting God direct me in every circumstance on my job.

At work the most negative thoughts that come to mind is, "Am I getting the job done effectively enough?", "Will I lose my job?", "Can I effectively help others today?", "Will I accomplish the tasks that I will be assigned?" When I begin to think these thoughts a word comes to my mind, As Psalms 75:6-7 states "For promotion cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, nor south. But God is the judge: he putteth down one, and setteth up another" (King James Version, n.d.). This scripture helps to bring me back down to earth and it gives me the reassurance that God will take care of me always.

My attitude toward my career, life and goals are likely to change in the next twelve to twenty-four months. I am growing on a daily basis in the knowledge of God and I am perfecting my walk in Christ Jesus. I am continuously growing spiritually and physically to be like Christ Jesus; to become a Christian of excellence as I transform daily. I gained a better understanding of what I value by reading a book by Oosting (2003). I began to think about his saying which states "Part of our change in values comes from what society expects of us and what we think society will tolerate while maintaining that which we enjoy and are good at doing" (p.12). As I move forward my walk with God, goals, and strategies for these goals will change according to my increase in spiritual matters and decrease in my own selfish desires, (Johnston,1996) "Desiring to be more servantlike, we must increasingly involve our best energies in worshipping him and helping his children in need, when they are in need"(p.82). I also think about the scripture in John 3:3 which says, "He must increase, But I must decrease, [He must grow more prominent; I must grow less so]" (The Amplified Bible, 1987). I am earnestly striving to be like Christ in my approach toward my occupation, life, and goals through this I know I will have a transformation.

I do like myself and I believe that I have value and am important. I personally am a person that has a good time even when I am by myself and I encourage myself in the Lord. A quote that I read said it like this, "Knowing that God loves and accepts us is the key to a healthy self-image" (Wright, 1989, p. 27). When I am down I love to sing hymns of God's greatness and His love for me, this brings calmness and peace to my soul. The strength I draw from my private devotion to God is what I use to give encouragement to others. As it is stated in I Thessalonians 5:14 "And we earnestly beseech you, brethren, admonish (warn and seriously advise) those who are out of line [the, loafers, the disorderly, and the unruly]; encourage the timid and fainthearted, help and give your support to the weak souls, [and] be very patient with everybody [always keeping your temper]" (The Amplified Bible, 1987). I feel you must first have the love of God in your life to have love for yourself and also to like yourself. Knowing this has always been my rock and strength to keep me whole and at peace within. I keep striving everyday to be like Christ and my daily prayer to God is make me first to be changed that my life will be in line with God's word and direction for my life. This brought me to what Wright (1989) said "Changing yourself just works better than trying to change others. And even if you see no changes in other people, your own changes will make life better for you and will reflect God's Word and power in your life" (p.43).

I believe that I am a joy to be around pretty much all the time. When I was in high school I had to go get my hair done every week the owner of the shop used tell me that I will never be friendless. Lots of people whether in high spirits or in distress, love to be around me because I am full of God's Spirit and I keep them laughing, and happy most of the time. I think of Proverbs 17: 22 "A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones" (King James Version, n.d.).

I influence others with love and encouragement in God as much as I can. I love to tell others about the goodness of the Lord and let them know what the word of God says to do in any situation that