…let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes.

Ephesians 4:23

They say that as your attitude goes, so goes your life. If your attitude is puny, chances are, your life will show it. From the expression on your face, to the way you think, talk, and feel…attitude is the driving force.

Attitude is everything.

But it works both ways. If your attitude is upright, even in the midst of adversity, your life can have a surprising buoyancy about it. 

With all the hits we’ve taken lately, many of us could use some help in the attitude department. The resiliency of our outlook has been challenged like never before and for many of us, an ugly pessimism has taken root.

With that in mind, here are five faith-based applications to help turn our attitudes around in the New Year:

1. Prayer pushes. Nothing can rejuvenate your attitude faster than a heart-to-heart with God. Paul lays this out beautifully in Philippians 4:6-7 Determine to take at least a few minutes every day for a private conversation with Him. No script is necessary – just be humble and be honest.

2. Volunteer bends.  This is when you go out of your way to serve someone else, whether it’s a family member, a co-worker, or a total stranger (Philippians 2:4).  Helping someone with a need is the perfect attitude reset because it gives you a break from thinking about your own stuff.  Serving is a little more complicated these days, but if you’re looking for it, the opportunity will present itself.

3. Faith flexes. Not Your biceps, but your belief that God is in you, with you, and for you. Faith is more than just believing that God exists; it’s also believing  that He’s not going to leave you hanging when you take a step of faith. (Hebrews 11:6). Regularly flexing your faith will help develop a confident mindset.

4. Truth touches. This is just getting our hands on the Word. The Bible will touch your heart and renew your mind like nothing else, but for this to happen you have to be intentional about your contact. Touch it and it will touch you back.  If you need help getting started, you might find Youversion helpful.

5. Positive presses. Push back against the weight of hopelessness and despair with a Christ-centered optimism. It sounds something like this:

I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.

Philippians 4:13

Don’t let negativity crush you. Instead, press back by repeating power quotes like this one.

There are five more movements we will recommend in the next post, but these five will get us started. Welcome to the Attitude Gymnasium!

It’s a new day with God. Run with it.