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A...is for Attitude

Album: Gold Audio 08: Beyond Expectations

Episode: 110

Lesson/Theme: Positive thinking; trusting God.

Bible Verse: Proverbs 3:5

Characters: Jimmy, Connie, Whit

Writer: Phil Lollar

Sound Designer: Bob Luttrell

Original Air Date: April 14, 1990

Last Air Date: June 3, 2008

Description:
Connie has had it with studying. She turns on the television for background noise and hears positive-thinking expert Dr. Vincent Van Schpeele on the Opera Geraldohue show. Dr. Van Schpeele is promoting his new book, Happiness Is a State, but You Can't Get There from Here. In his book, he theorizes that performance is directly tied to attitude-good attitude results in good performance, and bad attitude results in bad performance. Connie falls for this philosophy hook, line, and sinker. She immediately applies it to her life-starting with her geography test. She also begins spreading the gospel of positive thinking, convincing her friend Cheryl that she should try out for the school glee club-even though she's never sung before. Connie also tells Jimmy and Ben to let attitude win their next basketball game and encourages Peter to conquer his fear of heights by crossing the train trestle at Miller's Ravine. Needless to say, none of this works: Cheryl makes a fool of herself, Jimmy and Ben get creamed, and Peter ends up frozen with fear at the top of the trestle. Whit and Connie race off to rescue Peter, which Whit does just before a train runs them down! And Connie winds up with a "D" on her geography test. She has learned that it's foolish to rely on positive thinking rather than on the Lord.

Questions:
Why did Connie think Dr. Van Schpeele's book would help her? Is there anything wrong with positive thinking? When does positive thinking present problems? Why should you never, ever walk across a train trestle-or even on train tracks, for that matter?