LET US MAINTAIN A WINNING SPIRIT

I was recently ministering to young adults and sharing about this subject of acquiring and maintaining a winning mindset. I called it ‘The Caleb attitude”.

I keep wondering how to stimulate this positive energy that promotes success in life, especially for upcoming adults. I am convinced that carrying God’s nature and likeness includes operating in this winning mindset so we can ‘govern and subdue the earth’ appropriately.

There is this young man who is so negative and pessimistic – representing a big number of our young people. He keeps saying “you can’t get a job in Uganda unless you know someone in high places! I can’t start a business because I have no capital” he says. When you ask what he is passionate about he says “I am not sure. Me I can do any job. Ooh life is so hard” He goes on. Meanwhile he is getting pocket money from his parents! This kind of mentally is deadly and dangerous for Africa.

When it comes to mentoring young Christian adults, I am not worried about their redemption because that is secured. I am rather concerned about their general attitude to life and the quality of life that they will live here on earth. Life fundamentally dependents on choices we make which in turn dependents on the attitude we display. Some of them display a positive attitude but many of them tend to display self-defeating attitudes. My desire is that they may live successful, meaningful and fulfilling lives. This is what ultimately leads to a worthwhile legacy to the glory of God.

Nu13:17-33; Nu14:10, 23-24, Josh 14:7-14 tell us a lot about two different attitudes that were displayed by Caleb and Joshua versus what was displayed by the rest of the Jews during the wilderness.

Moses sent 12 clan-leaders to go and spy out the land that they were to conquer and come back with a report of the situation.  10 spies gave a negative pessimistic report. They said the land had giants and that they were like grasshoppers in their own eyes. Caleb and Joshua maintained that though there were giants they could still go and take it up because God was on their side. Two against 10 in the reporting! What makes people’s attitude so different? What determines the mindsets that’s we carry?

The Jews had been in exile in Egypt as slaves for over 400 years. This bondage had affected their view of themselves in particular and life in general. They displayed the following mindsets:

• They expect someone else to do stuff for them because for years the slave masters made decisions about everything in life for them.
• They always doubted if they could have enough of anything because it had never happened before.
• They couldn’t handle complex matters because they never had think through anything. So they complained when the going got tough.
• The new life in freedom was not going to be easy because it would not be the routine they were used to.
• They could not see beyond themselves or today.

However, Caleb refused to be a prison of his experiences. He decided to have a mental overhaul and to think alongside God who has a limitless mindset. He embraced God’s perspective on life wholeheartedly until it became his default. May we ask the Holy Spirit to help us acquire this Champion’s mindset!

It starts with self-awareness. What is your mindset? Does it tend towards Caleb’s mindset or is it like that of the majority of the Jews?

Secondly, let us celebrate the aspect of our mindset that is positive and godly.

Lastly let us decide to change the weak aspects of our mindsets. The answer is in deciding to follow the Lord whole heartedly until His mindset becomes ours.

PRAYER: Dear Lord, search us. Examine our mindset. We are sorry for where we have doubted you and where we have not walked in your likeness. Empower us to keep embracing your mindset so we can live this life successfully.

Amen!