Attitudes/Answers with Olen Baker

Believe you can action yourself into a new way of thinking and feeling, so you can demonstrate the fruit of the Spirit, like love, joy, and patience.  today is the day to be a blessing to others.

Open that gift, then begin giving in the ways that God intended for us to do.  Today we are gifted a savior.  Today, you can share His love.  Merry Christmas.

Tomorrow is the day we celebrate the birth of Jesus, the peacemaker.  Before you begin to open the gifts under the tree, spend a few moments to accept His gift.  Then, take that gift to the world.  

As we move closer to Christmas, let's also move closer to God.  Maybe Christmas day is the day that you turn your life to recieve His gifts.  Have you thought about that?

Anticipating Christmas morning usually means anticipation of what's in it for me, as in gifts.  Let's turn that around and ask, "what's in it for me, when I turn to God"?  Well, how about the best gift you ever got?

Here we are, about to celebrate Christmas.  Yes, it's unsettled, but the coming of Jesus into the world gives us hope for today.  So, what is your hope for Christmas?

Despair is anger turned inward.  To counter that, you must learn how to turn outward and lean on forgiveness as a healing tool.  It works every time.

Yes, it is.  To counter the negative affects of anger, focus instead on the gifts you have recieved from God.  

Failures come at some level in every stage of life.  When trouble comes, ask God help you experience His comfort, joy, and peace.  The sooner the better.

Bad things happen to everyone.  God's purpose isn't to punish us.  For those recptive to his kindness, God provides an antidote for hurt.

Your identity is centered on your behavior and attitude.  Unless you turn to God, grief can turn a sunny day into a cloudy forever.  No matter what the circumstance, allow God to help you begin the process of healing.

How long?  It's really up to you.  Getting fixated on saddness will stall the process of healing.  Turn to God for healing.

Grief is reality.  And God expects for us to get rid of all bitterness and anger so we can experience His peace.  

Getting stuck in grief is unhealthy.  God intends for grief to be the means for healing.  To start, open your heart to Him.

Habitual anger turns into hatred, and hatred can last a lifetime.  Have you ever known someone in your life who never did resolve an issue.  What a shame and what a waste of a life that was designed by God, to be peaceful.  Don't let that happen to you.

Unresolved anger turns into hatred, and like decay, can destroy the person.  Is that where you're at?

Understanding both sides of a conflict is necessary in order to resolve a conflict.  The same is true for you.  Do you understand the "root" of your anger?  Look first at you, then at the conflict.

It's tough, but in order to relieve anger, you must acknowledge your lack of control.  In other words, you can't fix another person, only God can do that.

Anger can be a heavy drain on so many aspects of our lives.  Prolonged anger has disasterous effects.  So, how can you allow anger to lead to a peaceful resolution?  Let's find out.

Anger is an emptotion that is hard to ignore and an essential emotion if we are to overcome anger with a peaceful result.  Stress is everywhere and is never going to cease to exist.  So, how do you handle anger?

Simply, it's a powerful emotion for creating a solution.  Without a solution, anger becomes a long term deadlock that stalls resolution.  

That's the question.  Here's the answer in just one word.  Communicate.  That takes grace and courage.  Ask God and he will tell you how to best communicate with the person on the other side of the conflict.

Ever hear of a person with a short fuse?  Maybe that's you.  So many things can trigger anger.  And that's okay.  Discovering a solution to quiet that anger and resolve a conflict always comes from God.

Simply, God gave us anger to teach us how to give and recieve forgivness.  That's a tough thing to do sometimes, but always necessary.

God never meant for anger to be a springboard for bitterness.  Anger can actually can help us find the strength to end a conflict.  That's how He designed us.