Lord, Change My Attitude: Before It's Too Late

by James MacDonald

  Table of Contents

  FOREWORD

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  AN INVITATION

  INTRODUCTION: READY FOR PROMISED LAND LIVING?

  Chapter 1: REPLACE A COMPLAINING ATTITUDE . . .

  CHAPTER 2: ...WITH A THANKFUL ATTITUDE

  CHAPTER 3: REPLACE A COVETOUS ATTITUDE...

  CHAPTER 4: ...WITH AN ATTITUDE OF CONTENTMENT

  CHAPTER 5: REPLACE A CRITICAL ATTITUDE...

  CHAPTER 6: ...WITH AN ATTITUDE OF LOVE

  CHAPTER 7: REPLACE A DOUBTING ATTITUDE...

  CHAPTER 8: WITH AN ATTITUDE OF FAITH

  CHAPTER 9: REPLACE A REBELLIOUS ATTITUDE...

  CHAPTER 10: ...WITH AN ATTITUDE OF SUBMISSION

  EPILOGUE: CHANGE... BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE

  STUDY GUIDE

  LORD, CHANGE

  MY ATTITUDE

  BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE

  LORD, CHANGE

  MY ATTITUDE

  BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE

  James MacDonald

  Foreword by Erwin Lutzer

  MOODY PUBLISHERS

  CHICAGO

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.

  All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the New American Standard Bible ®, Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. (www. lockman.org)

  Scripture quotations marked KJV are taken from the King James Version.

  Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton Illinois 60189, U.S.A. All rights reserved.

  Scripture quotations marked NKJV are taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

  Study guide produced with the assistance of Neil Wilson and The Livingstone Corporation (www.LivingstoneCorp.com).

  Published in association with the literary agency of Wolgemuth & Associates, Inc.

  Cover Design: Tobias’ Outerwear for Books Cover Photos: Brand X, Digital Vision Interior Design: Ragont Design

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  MacDonald, James, 1960-Lord, change my attitude—before it's too late / by James MacDonald.

  p. cm. Originally published: Chicago : Moody Press, c2001. Includes bibliographical references. ISBN-13: 978-0-8024-3439-5 ISBN-10: 0-8024-3439-8

  1. Attitude change—Religious aspects—Christianity. 2. Christian life.

  I. Title.

  BV4597.2.M33 2008 248.4—dc22 2007052964

  We hope you enjoy this book from Moody Publishers. Our goal is to provide high-quality, thought-provoking books and products that connect truth to your real needs and challenges. For more information on other books and products written and produced from a biblical perspective, go to www.moodypublishers.com or write to:

  Moody Publishers

  820 N. LaSght-provokulevard

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  Printed in the United States of America

  To Dave Corning,

  Rick Donald,

  and Kathy Elliott,

  Three partners in ministry who have faithfully chosen

  Christ honoring attitudes

  and whose joy and contentment

  consistently overflow to those who know them

  FOREWORD

  If it is true, as the saying goes, that attitude determines altitude, this book will help you “mount up with the wings of eagles”! In his own direct style, James MacDonald has pinpointed those negative attitudes that keep us in the wilderness of our spiritual experience and has given us positive help in developing God honoring attitudes that will bring us in to “Promised Land Living.”

  This book is not for everyone. Not all people who read books are really interested in changing their attitudes. Some are more interested in learning new “insights” rather than actually letting God change their lives. This book is intended to bring about positive, radical change. Those who are serious will benefit; those who read it with other people in mind, or simply as a primer on human nature, will finish it with the same attitudes with which they began.

  Let me suggest that you read the entire text of Israel’s adventure in the wilderness in your own Bible. Make the changing of your attitude your number one personal priority. Your family will be delighted, your friends will approve, and most of all, God will be pleased. That, after all, is the goal of personal transformation.

  I recommend this book because I believe that the transformation of our attitudes is the key to seeing the world through the eyes of faith; it is the key to the inner work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. The author gives practical illustrations and assignments that will help us view events and people the way God intended us to see them. Since how we live this life determines our rewards in the next, we must begin today to learn from the mistakes of those who have preceded us, and get on with becoming the people God wants us to be.

  So fasten your seat belt, as you take this tour of the wilderness, because just up ahead is the Promised Land. And, with the right attitude, you will enter in.

  ERWIN W. LUTZER

  Senior Pastor

  The Moody Church, Chicago

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  A powerful life lesson for me recently has been the power of simplicity. Simple pleasures, simple schedules, and simple expressions of thanks. Writing a book, however, is far from simple. Many people are at work to make it a reality. Thanks to the people of Harvest Bible Chapel who support my preaching ministry from which each of these chapters originated. Thanks to Rosa Sabatino who took each message from tape to transcript with punctuality and accuracy. Thanks to Neil Wilson, who edited each transcript from its verbal style to a written format with creativity and insight. Thanks to Jim Vincent at Moody Publishers, who made the final edits when I was done writing and greatly improved the end result. Thanks to Kathy Elliott, who brokered that process with her usual patience and commitment.

  Thanks also to Greg Thornton and all the folks at Moody Publishers who did their part to get this into book form and into the hands of readers like you.

  Special thanks to my wife, Kathy, and our three children, Luke, Landon, and Abby, who once again endured with great patience a husband/father who was dealing with deadlines and working on his own attitudes.

  Most of all, thanks are due to our faithful God, who has seen us through another important season of life and ministry with His abiding love and sufficient grace.

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  AN INVITATION

  So you’ve picked up a book on attitudes and now you’re trying to decide if you should read it. Let me help by asking a question: How did you get the book?

  -- Did you pick it up yourself browsing through a bookstore display? Are you considering whether an attitude upgrade might be the very best thing for your life right now?

  -- Did you receive this book as a gift from someone? Are they trying to tell you that your attitude needs some work? Or perhaps theirs needed some work, they read this book, and now they want you to share in the life change they have found so exhilarating.

  -- Maybe you received the book from a pastor or small group leader who knows you very well and believes this book will lead you into the kind of life transformation you have been searching for.

  -- Possibly you read my first book on change and are ready to take the next exciting ste
p in life transformation.

  However you came to hold this book, I’m glad you did. I have been praying that this would not be “just another book” for you but a marvelous, joy-producing experience between yourself and God.

  FIVE IMPORTANT QUESTIONS

  Before we get to the introduction (it’s really important that you read the introduction), I want to ask you five important questions based on the title of this book to help you decide if this is a book for you. Then I will conclude this invitation to read Lord, Change My Attitude by detailing six key features of each chapter. Each of these features is designed to help you pace yourself as you move through the life-changing content that is headed your way.

  First the questions. Question one is:

  Are you open to considering what the Lord has to say about changing your attitude?

  This is not some futile self-help book, and it’s not filled with the opinions of pseudo experts. This book is a study of what God has to say in the Scriptures about our bad attitudes. It details the consequences of rejecting God’s ways and the benefits of accepting God’s ways. Many people do not even believe in God, let alone have an interest in what He has to say about their happiness. To profit from this book, you have to be willing to reflect upon what the Bible says about attitudes and how God wants to change you.

  Are you open to considering what the Lord has to say about changing your attitude? Yes or No? (Circle one.) If the answer is yes, this book is definitely for you!

  Question two is:

  Are you willing to be changed?

  If change was easy, everyone would be doing it; but the fact is most people are just staying the same. So much so that we are generally pretty skeptical about people who say they have changed. As a pastor for more than fifteen years, I can tell you with confidence that people don’t change until they know for a fact that “their thing” is not working. Life change can never begin until some circumstance brings you to the unalterable conclusion that your current course is taking you somewhere you don’t want to go. Sometimes it’s a tragic event or a relational breakdown. Sometimes it’s a profound internal emptiness or a devastating personal failure. Whatever the circumstance that produces your readiness to change, you won’t make it through this book without one. In fact, if you think your attitudes are as they should be, might I suggest that you give this book to someone who is ready for it now? Personal transformation is not a leisure sport, so it might be better that you come back to it at a later date.

  Are you truly willing to be changed? Yes or No? (Circle one.) If the answer is yes, this book is definitely for you!

  Question three is:

  Are you willing to change your attitude ?

  The title makes it very clear that this is a book about attitudes. It’s not about your actions or your circumstances. It’s not about your relationships or your ministry. It’s about you, and more specifically it’s about your pattern of thinking. It’s about the way you look at life. Attitudes are patterns of thinking formed over a long period of time. You can’t change your attitudes in a few minutes, but you can admit the wrong ones and decide to begin working on the right ones. You can stop the flow of negativity that causes happiness to hemorrhage, and you can start the flow of good attitudes that causes abundant joy to overflow.

  Are you willing to change your attitude? Yes or No? (Circle one.) If the answer is yes, this book is definitely for you!

  Question four is:

  Are you willing to focus exclusively on your attitude?

  This is not a book to read with someone else in mind. Of course, you can share it with a friend, but please don’t do that until it has had its potential impact upon you. We all need to grow and change, and no one has the attitude thing down 100 percent. Certainly not you or me. Throughout the book I will be sharing my own struggles in the area of attitude and praying that God will give you the capacity to be honest about where you are at. So let’s promise now that we won’t be focusing on the shortcomings of others but really working on our own attitudes.

  Are you willing to focus exclusively on your own attitude? Yes or No? (Circle one.) If the answer is yes, this book is definitely for you!

  Question five is:

  Are you willing to go after this change of attitude with urgency?

  Did the “Before It’s Too Late” portion of the book title get your attention? Maybe you see yourself on a pathway that’s headed downhill. Maybe you’re seeing some of the fallout of bad attitudes in your family or where you work. We would be wrong to assume that there is always time to change. That is why Scripture says over and over again, “Today, if you would hear His voice, do not harden your hearts” (Psalm 95:7–8). In fact, that quote from Scripture describes the exact situation that we will be looking at. It’s a fact: Just because God is working in your heart today regarding a specific matter does not guarantee that He always will be. There is an urgency to the message of this book that you would do well to heed.

  Are you willing to go after this change of attitude with urgency? Yes or No? (Circle one.) If the answer is yes, this book is definitely for you!

  The way you have answered these questions will influence to a great extent what you receive from this book. I invite you to read it prayerfully, expectantly, and fervently. As you embrace attitude change and all that comes with it, you will never be the same!

  HELPFUL TOOLS

  Each chapter has six helpful tools to assist you in the process of attitude replacement. These tools will help you understand key concepts and apply them in your life. Read each section attentively, and expect God to give you guidance and strength for the changing of attitudes in your life.

  1. Chapter Couplets. Read the chapters in pairs. Note how the titles for each pair of chapters complete a sentence: “Replace an X Attitude . . . With a Y Attitude.” Every two chapters go together. More on this in the introduction (another reason you should read it!).

  2. “Say It in a Sentence.” Each chapter begins with a summary statement that connects the truth of that chapter to the central theme of the book: Those who choose murmuring as their lifestyle will spend their lifetimes in the wilderness. The purpose of these summaries is to leave no doubt about the subject matter that is on the table in any particular chapter.

  3. Bible Time. We will be focusing in on a particular time period where God’s Word communicates very clearly how God feels about bad attitudes. The people of Israel will serve as our negative example, particularly the events that occurred in the Old Testament book of Numbers, chapters 11 to 16. For teaching and illustrations of the positive attitudes that replace the ones we are putting off, we will be turning to the New Testament. By taking the truth of God’s Word seriously in each chapter, we can confidently anticipate that He will give us the strength to make the changes that are needed.

  4. “Up Close and Personal.” I own every attitude in the pages of this book—especially the negative ones! I couldn’t write about them if I didn’t know them from the inside. I will be candid about my own experiences and struggles in these areas. I’m familiar with wilderness journeys—both the way in and the way out. In each chapter, I’ll show you how that particular attitude has affected me, and how God continues to help me put the wilderness behind.

  5. “Let’s Talk Solution.” To help you move from thinking about attitudes to doing something about them, I will close each chapter with a series of pointed questions. The “Let’s Talk Solution” questions will help you move toward application and action.

  6. “Look Up!” Taking time to turn to God in prayer is essential to the process of life transformation. If you are like me, you may sometimes find it hard to express yourself to God in prayer. The prayers near the end of each chapter will help you confirm to God what you are intending to do in applying the truth in your own life. Use these prayers to keep your mind focused on your goal: This is change at the deepest level, attitude change.

  Now it’s time to read the introduction!

  This is now the thir
d time I have exhorted you to read the introduction. I know that it can be kind of boring in some books, but in this one it is essential. The introduction is where I give you the biblical context behind all the studies up ahead and explain why an ancient story has such urgent application for your life. The introduction is the foundation upon which this whole book is built.

  Now please turn to the introduction and begin learning how to change your attitudes.

  -- JAMES MACDONALD

  INTRODUCTION:

  READY FOR PROMISED LAND LIVING?

  The Sahara, the Mojave, the Gobi—deserts, all of them. Just the names can make your mouth go dry as they conjure up images of heat that abuses your senses. The sun beats down upon your forehead and into your eyes, forcing you to squint as you scan the horizon in every direction for shelter. Walking and walking but not getting anywhere as you trudge endlessly over identical dunes of desperation. Then you begin to think of water and realize you are thirstier than you have ever been in your life. You try to swallow but can’t because your throat is as dry as the wasteland around you. Your skin screams for shade as you feel the burning accelerate and know that you won’t be able to last much longer . . .

  Welcome to the wilderness! It’s a lousy place to visit and a devastating place to live. In fact, I would guess that not a single person reading this book lives in a desert—well, not a physical one. But we often live in a spiritual/emotional desert without realizing it. We feel the dry, lifeless, parched experience but fail to connect with where we really are and how we got there. Let me tell you straight up: It’s our attitudes that turn our lives into wilderness experiences.

  ATTITUDES ARE IMPORTANT

  You may be tempted to think that attitudes are not that important, that what really matters in life and to God is our actions, but ifid think that you would be wrong. Back, back, back, hidden in the Old Testament journey from Egypt to the Promised Land is the most radical thing God ever did until Christ and the cross. It’s an action that settles once and for all where attitudes are on God’s list of priorities for our lives. The children of Israel left Egypt and journeyed to the very edge of the Promised Land. The journey took eighteen months and covered more than three hundred miles. Not a lot of distance except that there were more than two million people, and twelve of the eighteen months were spent at the base of Mt. Sinai getting the Ten Commandments and God’s other laws.