All of us have issues at hand that will either enable
us to make or break, make us succeed or discourage us or even make us change
our minds. These are the challenges that make people different. Some will be
seen to be strong and others seen as weak or cowards. The whole concept is on
how we perceive optimism. I am here to encourage you to be optimistic no matter
the circumstances at hand. As a man, your family is dependent on you. You have
to give them hope in all situations.
We all live in the same world, but within that world,
each of us creates our own small world. Our small worlds are made of ideas and
beliefs. These ideas and beliefs present us with the ability to face the big
world in which we live. Some people have created a world of negativism,
self-defeating ideas, and self-imposed limitations. Others live in a world of
faith, they are optimistic about life, and they believe in the supernatural
power of God.
Life is full of challenges, but these challenges can
be interpreted differently. Some people look at them as obstacles, while others
look at them as opportunities.
There is no obstacle that life brings which cannot be
overcome. All great achievers have proven this to be true. There has never been
a winner who has not faced tough times and dead ends, times when everything
seemed to go dead, no money, no friends, no new ideas, no inspiration, no hope
or faith, no strength to move on. But in the midst of all that, winners hang on
optimistically and ride out the rough moments. They are persistent, they have
convictions, and they have faith, enthusiasm and courage.
Obstacles are there to cause us to grow strong, to
refine and purify us, and sad to say, they are there to weed out the lazy and
the sluggish, those who have no aspirations, those who have no faith and are
not optimistic. Optimistic people have several characteristics that set them
apart from the crowd. These have made me strong and hence the need to share
them with you.
A. Characteristics of the Optimistic Person
1.
Have faith.
They have faith in God and His creation .God is in control of all our
situations. We have to have faith in this God. Without faith it is impossible
to please God. We come to God in faith.
2.
Anticipate a good outcome. Optimistic people are those who anticipate the best
possible outcome in life, in others, themselves, and the world around them.
They avoid all things that are negative.
3.
They believe in themselves. They believe in being themselves and seek to grow to
what they should be. They do not seek to copy or try to be somebody else. They
do not believe in defeat or failures, but believe that they, like anybody else,
can make mistakes. They turn their mistakes into learning aids and stepping
stones toward excellence. They face the future in confidence.
4.
Express thoughts of victory. They express their thoughts precisely without the
fear of being misunderstood. They express thoughts of victory, thoughts of
overcoming obstacles, and they carry the seeds of success, victory, strength
and love wherever they go.
5.
Risk takers
- They take risks. They are persistent. They stick with it until they make it.
6.
Make lemonade from lemons. They turn their problems into opportunities. They
refuse to be stuck with the bad circumstance or situation. They believe and see
that God can get them out of the situation, no matter how bad it looks.
7. Believe
in people - They believe in human greatness, the power of faith and the
power of God that is in operation in the world.
8. Accept
only constructive criticism. Critics
and skeptics may work hard to discourage them, but they accept only
constructive criticism and move on with life.
B.
Pessimistic People.
The reverse can be said of pessimistic people. They
are very skeptical of things/people, of
others which we do not understand. Also they are judgmental – do we pass
judgment on people with whom we disagree in ideas, values, or concepts. Included
in the same is that they are critical - slow to change and rigid in the way we
perceive the world around us, strongly resistant to new ideas, self-defeating
in behavior, always noticing why something or an idea will not work, believe in
human weaknesses, failures, and
limitations, and let past mistakes and failures control their future.
C.
Optimistic People
Optimistic people are willing to give God a chance to
work through them, in spite of their shortcomings and past failures. They are open-minded and are willing to try
new ideas, experiences, and foods. At
the same time they are willing to take new challenges and new opportunities, to
cultivate their faith, to expand their borders and horizons, to enlarge their
territories, mind and experiences.
D.
How to Develop Optimism
We can manage our lives, our family or those under us
optimistically, and help each other reach our highest potential. We have to
allow God to become our life-time partner. Believe that He wants the best for
us. Believe in His strength and His miracle-working power. Spend more time
reading faith building Scriptures.
We need to spend time with people who uplift our
faith, people with positive outlooks on life. People with good attitudes will
help us to become a better person.
Everyone has weaknesses, failures, mediocrity, but we
also have skills, strengths, excellence, and above all, a BIG GOD, through whom
we can do all things.
We will become what we imagine ourselves to be. Our
imaginative power can change our lives for better or worse. Romans 8:6-7 “For
to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.
Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law
of God, nor indeed can be”.(NKJV)
Do
not limit God. When we are carnally minded, we kill the vision God has for us
Joshua 13:1 “Now Joshua was old, advanced in years. And the LORD said to him: "You are old, advanced in years, and
there remains very much land yet to be possessed”.(NKJV)We need to stop
limiting our God-given potential. We limit God when we do not believe in
ourselves. We need to identify walls that we have built around ourselves, the
walls of self-defense, negative attitudes, doubts, and closed mindedness. We
cannot allow people to water down our faith by their "It cannot be
done" attitudes.
An
optimistic person believes in the principle that there is always room for
progress and advancement. He believes that nothing is impossible when we let
God help us achieve our goals. This person also believes in the excellence of
mankind, when one stands on the Word of God and allows God's creative power to
flow through him.
E. See What the Bible says.
Notice
how much emphasis is placed on the words that come out of our mouths. Proverbs
6:2: “You are snared by the words of your mouth; You are taken by the words of
your mouth.”(NKJV)
Proverbs
18:21:”Death and life are in the power of the tongue, And those who love it
will eat its fruit”.(NKJV).
Let our lips speak words of life.
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