Video Transcript: Be a Giver

So here we are at the last presentation of this mini course, on how to develop  great attitude. This is sort of the wrap up, like, what's, what's something we can  think about, that just sort of encapsulates a positive attitude. And that is to  cultivate an attitude of being a giver, not a taker, giving attitude and great  attitude go together. Luke 6:38, give and it will be given to you a good measure,  pressed down, shaken together, running over will be poured into your lap. For  the measure, For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. A person who is a giver is treated with favor. That's a true whether it's growing in the  grace yourself and giving to yourself, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, or  giving it to others through being a forgiver, this passage, the context to give it  shall be given to you the verse before it says, Forgive and you will be forgiven  and that word in the Greek is release. And you will be released forgive. And we  talked about that in this session about not developing bitter roots and holding on to them, but forgive others. The Attitude of Gratitude the attitude of giving  changes your life. People are seen as takers. And if you are a taker, you will see yourself as a taker. Now people say are you can Oh, you can be perfect and  giving no. I mean, we have this sinful nature, I'm talking cultivate the attitude of  giving. To get a great attitude sustainability. We read from Proverbs 11:18, the  wicked man earns deceptive wages. But he who sows righteousness, reaps a  sure reward. This is about giving again, it's about sowing righteousness, about  sowing the fullness of a relationship with Jesus Christ. What that relationship  means, how you live out the positive truth of resurrection life, hope that we have  for all eternity. It's how to then sow those sort of seeds and to invest in people.  I'm going to go back to something that was talked about earlier, but I just wanted to end with really making this point clear, overlook offenses. Ecclesiastes 7:21- 22. Do not pay attention to every word people say. Or you might hear your  servant cursing you for you know, in your heart that many times you yourself  have cursed others. a giving person basically even look at people who curse  them in a positive fashion. Again, overlook offenses. I've observed. So this last  presentation is just observing. I have observed that the people who overlook  offenses do well and they have a great attitude. My mentors had that I  remember back one of my early mentors, was Marty Ozinga who's just  been such a great man in my life, and he would be one to overlook offenses.  And even like if that person did this, that that and that and whatnot, and, and he  would just model, let's work with that person, you know, and, again, intelligently,  not so they can bring harm, but not to hold a grudge to overlook offenses and  Rich DeVos. Another mentor was always about, you know, you know, let's, let's  not focus on that. Let's focus on the future. And that is how to live it. Many of us  have so many offenses in our family. Many people have offenses in your work.  But if you keep focused on the offenses, you don't make an impact in who you  are called to impact. You're stuck. It's so easy to get stuck. Really to sum it all  up. Is givers bear much fruit. If you're a giver, you sow seed. You move on you 

give to others. We read Galatians 5 and this is the last verse of this mini course.  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness,  faithfulness, gentleness and self control against such things, there is no law to  be a giver, to give as you've been given to that measure, to plant seeds like that, and to ask the Lord, to help you serve him in such a way that all you do is grow  the fruit of the Spirit, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, and self control all of that, as you give to that as you grow in them and give that  away, it changes everything for you, your attitude, you grow in those traits, and  you take responsibility for your life, you become a giver, not a taker, what  happens is you become really positive, a positive person. Now, I want one little  danger to watch out for. I am not saying Be a giver, to a constant taker. So  you're an enabler, who you're giving to people who just take and but the pastor  said to give. No, my talk is about having an attitude of giving. And it might be  that for a taker, you must give to them a boundary that helps them do well and  keeps them away from blame, which we talked about earlier, that's still a form of  being a giver, you're thinking of the best interest of others, not only yourself. So  here we have it, we've gone through this mini course, about how to get a great  attitude. I would recommend that read books about positive thinking. I know  some people go like oh positive the thinking, but don't become the preacher  against someone who's going through a bad time. So do not take this class, and make it some sort of a stick and make people feel bad about how they don't  have a positive attitude. I'm talking about you. This is for you, how you can  develop a positive attitude. You know, I pray that each Christian will grow in the  grace that is our Lord Jesus Christ, and receive from him the most positive  news, and it so infects them and infuses in them a message. And that's this. And I started with us, in this course I end with it, your sins are forgiven. Your life is in  Christ Jesus. He is with you every day, when you pray, he listens to you. Death  is taken care of the grave was empty, for all eternity. You are alive with Christ in  God. Your future is positive. You know, God was with us in the very beginning of  time, he is with us in our lives right now. And he'll be with us forever. If that does  not encourage a positive attitude, nothing will. So my encouragement for you is  to grow in that and infect the world like a virus of joy, peace, patience, kindness,  goodness, love, gentleness, self control, all the fruit, that the fruit of the Spirit  might turn to seed. And that seed might bless others that they too exhibit the  fruit of the glory of God. That's a positive attitude.