I believe you get to pick the roads you travel. In America this is especially true. Many young people dream of driving cross country picking the roads to travel. Route 66? Interstate 20? A road less traveled? Picking our attitudes has everything to do with what roads we will travel and how we will experience the world. Attitude is the paintbrush of your mind…we get to determine how the picture will look. But not just in our minds…our attitudes shape our life and the roads we travel, especially when it comes to relationships.
If you live long enough and you interact with people, you realize all people are sinners. Despite the fact that you have to “deal with” sinners, I highly recommend getting involved in the lives of others. Relationships are one of the most valuable resources for life. All people are imperfect and make multiple mistakes. And all people at some point hurt one another either intentionally or unintentionally. When we experience that hurt, we get to choose which road we will travel.
We can choose the Low Road…..where we treat others WORSE than they treat us (low road always has the danger of a flood).
We can choose the Middle Road…where we treat others the SAME as they treat us (we just blend and go unnoticed).
We can choose the High Road….where we treat others BETTER than they treat us (we choose to have a higher view, no danger of the flood).
“Whenever you’re in conflict with someone, there is one factor that can make a difference between damaging your relationship and deepening it. That factor is attitude.” ~William James
I love this quote by W. Clement Stone: “There is little difference in people, but that little difference makes a big difference. The little difference is attitude. The BIG difference is whether it is positive or negative.”
In Proverbs 23:7 Solomon wrote, “As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he.”
We can all learn from scripture and from Solomon. Solomon didn’t pray for riches or knowledge. He prayed and asked God for wisdom. A funny thing happened. All those others things he could have asked for came after his request for wisdom.
I encourage you today to examine your attitude. Becoming totally responsible for the attitude you choose will enable you to take the High Road in your relationships and with complete strangers. Taking the High Road gives you a view that is spectacular…where there is no danger of getting caught up in a flood….where you can have a greater vision of the road ahead…for your life….where it is impossible to blend in with the crowd.
Remember this…God chooses what we go through. WE choose how we go through it. We can’t control nor predict the actions of others but we can control and pick our attitudes…and our responses.
Choose the High Road.
Not only will your view be a great one, other people’s view of you and Christ in you will be radiant as well. Matthew 5:16, “In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”