“Let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes.”
Ephesians 4:23 (NLT) Change requires new thinking. In order to change, you must learn the truth and start making good choices, but you also must change the way you think. The way you think determines the way you feel, and the way you feel determines the way you act. If you want to change the way you act, start by changing the way you think. In addition, if you want to change the way you feel, you must start with the way you think. For instance, you can say, “I need to love my spouse more.” But just saying that isn’t going to change anything. You can’t fight your way into a feeling. You must change the way you think about your spouse. This will change the way you feel, which will then change the way you act. The Bible says, “Let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes” (Ephesians 4:23 NLT). The battle for sin—the battle to deal with those defects in your life that you don’t like—starts in your mind. If you want to change your behavior or emotions, start with your thoughts and attitude. The renewal of your mind is related to the word “repentance.” Repentance might seem like a dirty word for a lot of people. They think it means something bad, something they don’t really want to do, something painful. They think of a guy standing on a street corner with a sign that says, “Repent! The world’s about to end!” But “repent” simply means to make a mental U-turn. Repentance is about more than changing your behavior. It’s about changing your mind and learning to think differently. You turn from guilt to forgiveness, from frustration to freedom, from darkness to light, from hatred and bitterness to love. You may also need to change the way you think about God. He’s not mad at you; he’s mad about you! You’re deeply flawed, but you’re deeply loved. Start with your mind. You can change the way you think about all kinds of things—your relationships, the economy, the world, and your past, present, and future. Changing the way you think will eventually change your emotions and your behavior.
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“Throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception.”
Ephesians 4:22 (NLT) Change requires making choices. It’s not enough to dream of changing. It’s not enough to desire change. To change, you need to make a decision. You must choose to change. Change is intentional. Are you going to be any different in six months? Are you going to be better a year from now? Are you going to be healthier, stronger, and more mature? Are you going to be happier? Are you going to be less in debt? Are you going to be more like God wants you to be? I can tell you the answer right now: These changes will only happen if you choose to change—because change doesn’t happen accidentally. Change requires a choice. A lot of times we think we’re waiting on God to change us. No! God is waiting on you. He’s waiting on you to say, “Yes, Lord, I’m willing to make these changes.” You will need to make intentional choices in order to grow. There is no growth without change, there is no change without loss, and there is no loss without pain. If you are going to grow, you will have to change. And change means you let go of some old things in order to grab hold of some new things. It’s like swinging on a trapeze. The trapeze artist swings out on one bar and then has to reach out and grab the other one. At some point, he’s got to let go of one to grab on to the other, or he’s not going to make it to the other side. If he thinks he can hold on to both, what happens? He gets stuck in the middle, and he’s going to fall. Some of you are stuck in the middle, and you’re falling because you haven’t let go of the old patterns, the old habits, and the old ways of thinking. You have to let go of your old ways. The Bible says, “Throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life” (Ephesians 4:22 NLT). In other words, let it go. Those old habits, those old hurts, those old patterns, those old sins in your life—let them go. The Bible says to throw them off and trust that God is working in you “to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose” (Philippians 2:13 NIV). |
AuthorTaken from Daily Hope by Rick Warren. Categories
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