The 'Be - attitudes'

I am recovering (physically and mentally) from the weekend's activities (Copa IBA, World Cup and England's premature flight home), not purely because I am old-ish, but also because I think I do not get sufficient sleep (zzz deprivation). I find that the more activities I get involved in, the more likely I am to get dizzy spells, haha (actually it is no laughing matter, as I can suffer from it for days). The room literally SPINS.

All the same, The Lord Jesus refreshed me during the weekend with new fellowships (Copa IBA) and through the Footstool Players' Runaway Bride. I will post about my role as a Team Manager soon. Suffice to say although my Mighty Ducks did not complete the games with an olive laurel, they were pretty good: they finished third - good kids, all of them.

Coming back to my post, this morning I received an encouraging message from The Lord Jesus during my morning devotion. I have just started the July/August issue of Everyday with Jesus by Selwyn Hughes and this time, the theme is one of my favourite part of the Gospels: Jesus' Beatitudes.

I have for some time taken a lot of encouragement and joy from reading Christ's Beatitudes as propounded in the Sermon on the Mount (starts in Matthew 5). The Beatitudes, or Declarations of Blessedness or even 'Beautiful Attitudes' are a collection of godly and positive attitudes so vital for us Christians to adopt. These 'crisp and powerful statements give us the irreducible minimum we need for our souls to work in Jesus Christ's way'. Here they are:

The Beatitudes (Matthew 5)

1Now when he saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, 2and he began to teach them saying:

3"Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

4Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

5Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

6Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

7Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.

8Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

9Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.

10Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11"Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you."

How wonderful are the words of our Lord Jesus, and how wise.

Truly, the attitudes Jesus talks about, if adopted and practiced will powerfully impact our and others' lives - spiritually, mentally, emotionally and even physically (Selwyn Hughes).

There is a quote from the devotion that I find really apt:

'Your attitudes determine your altitude'

The heights in which we reach in our Christian walk in this life is highly dependent upon the attitudes we adopt. "When you adopt the attitudes expounded by our Lord Jesus, the sky is the limit."

God bless you.