October 15

Choosing Your Attitude


Get rid of all bitterness….

Ephesians 4:31 (NIV)


If you want an example of what God can do with a life free from bitterness, just look at Joseph. While Joseph never did any of the things we normally associate with greatness—no miracles, no incredible acts of courage—nothing spectacular, still God used him greatly. The one thing that makes Joseph stand out, the thing that made him so great afterall … was his attitude.

Chuck Swindoll, in his book on Joseph, quotes American author Elbert Hubbard as saying, “The proof of greatness lies in being able to endure (contemptuous treatment) without resentment.”

Joseph went through the wringer of life, but his unrelenting, enduring faith in God and the resultant attitude toward life’s circumstances and others carried him to new heights of service and maturity.

Joseph’s godly attitude is seen at the end of Genesis when his father dies and his brothers are concerned he will seek revenge. Instead, Joseph reassures them, “Don’t be afraid of me. As far as I am concerned God turned into good what you meant for evil" (Genesis 50:19-20).

Yes, it’s all about attitude, isn’t it? You may not have been wrongfully enslaved, or victimized by a sexual predator, or unjustly jailed like Joseph, but somebody at sometime mistreated you, or spoke unkindly to you or about you. You’ve been hurt and it wasn’t right. We’ve all been there.

So the question for us is: Can we keep our eyes on Jesus and get rid of the bitterness? It can happen. Our attitude, it seems, is a choice.


Father, help me to think like Joseph, to act more like Jesus. Lord, help me to love. Amen.