A Good Enough Attitude Affects Your Relationships

"A Good Enough Attitude Affects Your Relationships"

By Zach Wood

Ephesians 4:29

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.

Your relationships with others can and will be greatly affected when you exhibit a mediocre life.  Your ways of doing things will not be such a great example and the ways you show others how to do things may not be taken with sincerity or be meaningful. 

It is quite easy, when we fall into the mediocre way of life, to let the things we say to others become less and less meaningful.  Before we know it, we have stopped giving encouragement to others.  We have stopped going that “extra mile” to help others out.  We just become melancholy.  When we are not trying our best anymore, people see that and wonder.

I struggle with the “good enough” attitude at my job.  I strugge with it during my family time.  I even struggle with it doing church work.  All areas of my life suffer when I have the "good enough" attitude.  I find myself thinking “This is good enough" when I could be doing much better. 

If we possess a “good enough” attitude, then what is coming out of our mouths all day long while we work or when we go to church or when we are with our families?  Probably not the most encouraging and uplifting words.  If we are allowing words to come out that are not lifting others up and giving them positive thoughts to think about, we need to reconsider our attitude.

Our relationships with others will be strengthened when we have more than a good enough attitude.  People are listening to us when we talk.  Are they hearing positive things or negative things?  To be an effective witness in our relationships, we need to be positive and be a Godly role model.

A Good Enough Attitude Results In A Mediocre Effort

"A Good Enough Attitude Results In A Mediocre Effort"
By Zach Wood
Colossians 3:1-3
Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.  Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.  For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.

 I keep asking myself this question.  How in the world can I expect incredible things to happen in my life if I am only willing to have a “good enough” attitude?  It’s like I’m expecting God to do something more amazing to me and with me while only giving a half-hearted effort.  If I am not able to put my whole heart into everything I do and do it to the best of my ability, then I cannot expect great results.  That’s when I need to do a self-evaluation of my attitude and heart. 

As Christians, our lives are now with Christ.  We are no longer our own, but bought by the blood of Christ!  We must keep our eyes fixed on Jesus Christ.  Anytime our mind is focused on the things of this world, we take our eyes off of Christ, mediocrity can settle in and that results in problems.  We end up giving a mediocre effort when we are not focused on what God desires.  If we focus on Christ, our "good enough" attitude turns into a "give it our all" attitude!  

We are called to praise God in every situation we encounter.  No matter what we encounter, God challenges us to give Him thanks and to be a witness.  However, we are human and we often fall into a slump where we don’t feel like trying.

There are many reasons we can fall into the slump of having an attitude that gives mediocre results:

Fatigue

Uncertainty of life

Things weighing you down at home/work/school/church

Not having any goals in life set

These and other things can result in our mood shifting to not caring about much and just doing enough to get the job done at work, at home, at church, at school and then going off to do your own thing.  It’s normal sometimes to feel like you don’t care about anything.  We all fall into that mode at times.  However, if we stay in that “good enough” mentality, it will affect our lives dramatically.

I encourage all of us to remember that we must set our minds and hearts on things above, not on the material, earthly things that will not last.  We need to go from "good enough" to "giving our all".  Why?  Because God gave so much more and didn't have a "good enough" attitude.

He gave us His all, so why can't we give our all?