For as he thinks in his heart, so is he…. Proverbs 23:7 NKJV
Draw a line and then write four words from left to right: optimist, realist, skeptic, and cynic. In so doing you move from sunshine to partly cloudy, to sodden gray sky, to near darkness. The young woman who is an optimist says, “Hey, there are lots of handsome guys here.” The realist says, “There are a few good men left, but not many!” The skeptic says, “I doubt that there is one for me; I’ll probably end up being an old maid.” The cynic says, “I’m sure I’ll never find anyone to marry.”
Any casual observer of human nature acknowledges that different people look at the same situation and come up with vastly different perceptions. The optimist smiles and says, “Life is wonderful!” The realist neither smiles nor frowns but says, “Well, life has its ups and downs.” The corners of the skeptic’s mouth turn down as he says, “I doubt that things will ever be much better” while the cynic frowns saying, “I’m sure I’ll die from this problem.”
Surprising as it may be, individuals who are born to the same set of parents, grow up in the same homes, eat the same food, go to the same schools, often have vastly different outlooks on life. And if you are a student of history or the Bible, you recognize it has always been that way. Two sisters who figure prominently in the life of Jesus, Mary and Martha, who with their brother Lazarus lived in Bethany, illustrate the point. Mary was the optimist; Martha, the skeptic. The former was sure that Jesus was in control; the latter questioned that He even understood the issue.
The coach who is an optimist says, “This team has great potential; one of the best I’ve seen.” The realist, however, is not so sure. He says, “Definitely there’s talent here. We have a pretty good chance of making the play-offs.” The skeptic says, “We’ll probably die before we get to the play-offs,” but the cynic says, “Not a chance. We’ll never do it.”
And—are you ready for this? Each one is exactly right. The optimist has an infectious smile. He looks people in the eye, convincing them that they can do what they thought never possible. The realist doesn’t excite people the same way. “You might just do it,” he says, “and then again, you might not.” Nothing about that attitude causes you to put out 110%. The skeptic—God deliver us from the same—registers surprise when his team wins. “Boy, you surprised me,” he says. The cynic? You’ll never find a cynic with a winning team. He’s the one who says, “I knew you guys couldn’t do it.”
OK, what’s the point on today’s commentary? You are the one who decides what happens. Attitude is everything. The writer of Scripture said, “As a man thinks in his heart, so is he” (Proverbs 23:7). While that may not let you shoot hoops like Shaq O’Neil, your attitude has everything to do with maximizing your potential.
It’s quite amazing that how you think makes the difference between failure and success.
OK, where do you see yourself on that spectrum ranging from optimist to cynic? It’s true, our basic personalities are a reflection of our DNA: factors we were born with. But it’s amazing how attitude pushes us in the direction we want to go—no matter where it is.
Remember, your thinking determines your behavior, and your behavior decides whether you will win or lose. Choose to win. It is something that only you can do. Scripture is right, “As [he] thinks in his heart, so is he” (Proverbs 23:7).
Resource reading: Philippians 1:1-6
