Bible Reading: John 11:1-17
If you were to look up the word pessimist, I believe out beside the word
you would find a picture of old Thomas.
We read in John 11:16, “Then said Thomas, which is called Didymus, unto
his fellow disciples, Let us also go, that we may die with him.” We read in John 20:25b, “Except I shall see
in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the
nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe.” Old Thomas, the pessimist!
I once heard about a farmer who was continually optimistic, seldom
discouraged or blue. He had a neighbor
who was just the opposite. Grim and
gloomy, he faced each new morning with a heavy sigh.
The happy, optimistic farmer would see the sun coming up and shout over
the roar of the tractor, “Look at the beautiful sun and clear sky!” And with a frown, the negative neighbor would
reply, “Yeah–it’ll probably scorch the crops.”
When clouds would gather and much-needed rain would start to fall, our
positive friend would smile across the fence, “Ain’t this great–God is giving
our corn a drink today!” Again, the same
negative response, “Uh huh, but if it doesn’t stop ‘fore long, it’ll flood and
wash everything away.”
One day the optimist decided to put his pessimistic neighbor to the
maximum test. He bought the smartest,
most expensive bird dog he could find.
He trained him to do things no other dog on earth could do–impossible
feats that would surely astonish anyone.
He invited the pessimist to go duck hunting with him. They sat in the boat, hidden in the duck
blind. In came the ducks. Both men fired and several ducks fell into
the water. “Go get ‘em!” ordered the
owner with a gleam in his eye. The dog
leaped out of the boat, walked on the water, and picked up the birds one by
one. “Well, what do you think of
that?” Unsmiling, the pessimist
answered, “He can’t swim, can he?”
✞ Let your attitude also be one of Godliness. Ask God to help you in this area.
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