Video Transcript: Abandon Victim Attitudes

Welcome back. We're talking about how to cultivate a great attitude. And here's  a truth that cannot be denied that victim, thinking douses a great attitude is true.  Blaming and striving against God. Romans 9:19-20. But one of you will say, to  me, then why does God does still blame us for who resists his will? But who are  you, oh, man to talk back to God? Shall what is formed, say to him who formed  it? Why did you make me like this? This is a spiritual form of victim thinking. we  see that in Job where Job's friends are trying to get Job to curse God and die,  because great calamity has come upon Job and his family. At some point, God,  the Creator, made our situation. And to accept that, and to not strive against this  and say, I will take whatever situation I am given, and I will glorify God, through  my life in this situation. Victim thinking and what I want to talk about victim  thinking is, again, a sensitive, very politically incorrect thing to talk about,  because many will say, you know, that it's the plight of the victim. And that we  have to concern ourselves with the victim, and then get a worldview around  categories of people that have been victimized by, you know, the supremacy of  some group, or whether it's capitalists or whether it's this controlling power, you  know, the supremacy of one particular party, the supremacy of a worldview out  of universities, the supremacy, you can start talking about when you talk about  the supremacy, and those who are victimized by the supremacy of a white man,  the supremacy of feminism, the supremacy, of a racial perspective, and all of  these are world constructs. Those are the constructs that take away from the  glory of God as He has made man and woman in his image, and he has created this world for us to be stewards in the world. That's the biblical worldview. So  what happens is, there is a, like a Marxist philosophy that tries to get everyone  to believe that somehow they're persecuted, they're the victims and then out of  that victim, you rise up in conflict. That's called the conflict theory, and those who are victimized, take down the victimizers, again, that's a narrative out there right  now. So, but in a very practical way, if you adhere to victim thinking, it's very  hard to get a positive, great attitude. You know, victim thinking, started way back in the Garden of Eden. Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild  animals the Lord God has made. And he says to the woman, Did God really say, You must not eat from any tree in the garden? There is a conflict theorist, Satan  himself in the form of a serpent, Did God really say, oh, Eve, you and Adam, are  such victims, by God overbearing, that you can't eat any of the fruit of any of the  trees in the garden. God only said, do not eat of the Tree of the Knowledge of  Good and Evil, eat of the Tree of Life. But there's that victim thinking that comes. So it seems a little counter intuitive. To think that to not do the woe is me, will  actually bring you happiness. And that's true. There's a counter intuitive, take  responsibility approach, that when you take responsibility, and don't compare  yourself to anybody else, that you find a better attitude. So let's talk about the  counter intuitive take responsibility approach. Well, first of all, Know that you will  sin and fail and you need to give yourself grace, to admit this. I John 2:1, My 

dear children, I write you this. So you will not sin, But if anyone does sin, we  have one who speaks to the Father in our defense, Jesus Christ, the righteous  one. So in taking a take responsibility approach to a great attitude, know that it's  impossible to be perfect in this. This is an attitude of life, that essentially, you  admit when you're wrong, you forgive you, if something needs to change, you  take responsibility to bring changes, this general attitude brings a lot of  confidence and credibility and an attitude of gratitude. So, number two, the  counter intuitive approach of taking responsibility, know that you will, that others  will fail you and it is easy to allow their failures to be your excuse, to blame  instead of Thrive, Genesis 5:20. I love how Joseph says this, you are intended  to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what has been done,  the saving of many lives. So the story of Joseph is fascinating sold into slavery  to into two captives in Egypt. He goes through a whole story can read about that in the latter part of the book of Genesis. And at every point, he is confronted with places where he could become the victim. Like, he's tempted by Potipher's wife.  And, you know, he basically could say, you know, I deserve this. I deserve to  have sexual relations with this woman. You know, I'm put in charge now. And  I've been vindicated after being unfairly sold into slavery. But instead, he says,  No, this is not right. He does not do it. But he does not become a victim about it.  Even after he's thrown into prison. He's got a positive attitude in prison. And it's  so positive, that eventually he's remembered and as the teller of dreams, so he  tells Pharaoh, his dream. And then as time goes on, he saves even his family  from famine, and then that passage, I'll go back to it again. Because the  brothers are worried about being persecuted by him. And then he says, You  intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is being  done the saving of many lives. Wow. There is a not victim thinker. And it's  amazing. It's counter intuitive. Here's number three, know that you need to stay  away from leader comparisons. In the here's some interesting passages in the  early church. There was a sort of like, there's that person, there's this person,  and they're not taking responsibility for the walk for God. They're saying, I follow  this person, I follow that person. I Corinthians 1:12. What I mean to say is this  one of you says, I follow Paul, another follow Apollos another I follow Cephas,  still the other I follow Christ, or I Corinthians 3:4. For when, one says, I follow  Paul and another I follow Apollos, are you not mere men? There is something in  eroding to responsibility when essentially, you do something merely based on  following someone else. Now, when I follow someone else, I own that piece that  they share as a gift of God, but I do not blame them if it works or doesn't work.  So many people I've noticed over the years, will they'll try something. And  instead of like engaging in what it is and learning from it in your situation, they  will say here's this book, I'm copying the book as it is. Now, I am not against  listening really intensely to what others have to say. But then when it doesn't  work, I find that they'll they'll even then ditch the book and they will dis it and 

they'll say, ah, that person and in that was happened in the early church. You  know, people will come forward and then something Didn't quite go right. And  then there would be the Well, Paul said this Apollos said that and that it would  

create an environment where instead of owning their own direction, instead,  they were blaming others as an excuse. The counter intuitive approach of  responsibility. Number four, know that you will do better take responsibility for  your thoughts, actions and behavior. I Peter 2:12. Live such good lives among  the pagans that though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your  good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us. So, take a responsibility  then means is that when you live your life, as an image bearer of God, blaming  no one, you know, what is take responsibility of the essence? Does that have  anything to do with blaming? Well, in some ways it does it does this, I will first  blame myself seems a little bit strange. Well, because if I blame myself, I know  that I see the truth that I am a fallen person that I need grace. And where do  people who need grace go? They go to Jesus Christ, if anyone sins go to him, I  also know that I am a servant. I am not the know it all. I don't have all the  answers. So I can live in the freedom of knowing that, look, we're all on the earth together. We all need the same savior, Jesus Christ. I can look at somebody  else and see the 1000 ways that they've done something wrong. Or I can sort of  point to myself, see I want to be careful with that word, blame, but you get what  my point is, I can point to myself. And I can say, You know what, as far as I'm  concerned, may I glorify God, fully in my life. You know, a lot of people, they live  their lives, never really look at themselves with sober judgment. That is what I'm  saying. The apostle Paul says, Look to yourself with sober judgment. That's  taking responsibility. One more thing. Keep away from people, from keep away,  keep people away from blaming, if possible. Stay with people, but keep people  away from blaming if possible. I Timothy 5:7 says, give people these instructions too so they may be. So no one may be open to blame. So what is the Apostle  Paul saying here, and then no one will be open to blame. I believe good  leadership is creating a place where people do well. Good management is  creating places where people do well with the gifts God has given them. A  leader is not about being on the throne. A leader is about lifting others up to  places that they do well. And when that starts happening, a culture of a take  your responsibility for who you are a excitement about doing. What you're called to do, comes over the entire culture and over to you. You believe that you are a  servant of God, called to discharge your duties and you do it in order to lift up  others. You know what that does, that creates a great attitude inside yourself.  And it takes the pressure off. I know we will never get away from blaming and  complaining because that's so in our sinful nature, but in the new life of Jesus  Christ, that blaming and complaining is crippled. And we more and more take  responsibility. You know, I'm going to end with a little story from my brother. So  my brother tells a story where he was a young leader and he worked for a 

Japanese company and something went wrong. And and he didn't think it was  his fault, any anything, any part of it was his fault. So the owners of the company called him into the office and said to my brother Rich, said, well, Rich, we have  good news for you. And my brother said okay. We are not going to fire you for  what happened. And my brother was like, Hey, I had nothing to do with this. And  then they went on to say, they use the word severe, we first must be severe on  ourselves and ask ourselves, what did we do that in our policies in our  leadership, that allowed someone else to fail so much? So you're the leader,  that person failed under you? What can you learn to not let that happen again?  In other words, they're saying, to not allow someone else to be open to blame or blaming others. And I always thought that was an interesting way to leave it  severe. So when something goes wrong, I like to first ask myself, you know,  severe sort of blame myself, sort of, what did I do wrong? Or what do I need to  change? Not in a way that I self loath and all these other things like that. But  what can I improve? How can my ego not get in the way? How can I see what  God has in store because of the situation? So in being a person who cultivates a great attitude, it is about not being a blamer, or a complainer or a victim of  thinking that then permeates my existence so I can't function any longer instead, by the grace of God. Seeing things the way they are so I may grow up in him.  who is my head and I may bless others