Mindsets

Many have situations or things about themselves they would like to change. I mean, do we ever not have something? I have my doubts. But, how do we go about changing? Where do we start? We can find the answer to this in Ephesians--take special notice of vs. 23.

Eph 4:22-24

22 Strip yourselves of your former nature [put off and discard your old unrenewed self] which characterized your previous manner of life and becomes corrupt through lusts and desires that spring from delusion;

23 And be constantly renewed in the spirit of your mind [having a fresh mental and spiritual attitude],

24 And put on the new nature (the regenerate self) created in God's image, [Godlike] in true righteousness and holiness.

AMP


To change our behavior we must first change our mindset!

We must change the way we think about whatever it is we want changed. We must daily renew our minds! It’s a simple mathematical equation really: wrong thoughts lead to wrong actions and right thoughts lead to right actions! Sounds pretty simple when put that way.

So, what area in your life are you struggling with today? Take inventory of the thoughts and attitudes you hold toward that ’thing’ you are wanting changed. What do you see? You might be surprised. What we think is a powerful thing. Our thoughts, held long enough, become the truth that we respond to--even if our thoughts are far from truthful. Even when they are askew, we will embrace that which we think on long enough as our own truth. To break the cycle, we must take an honest look at ourselves.

A word of caution: It is easy during self-reflection to begin to compare ourselves to others and create for ourselves an atmosphere of defeat. Or, to use others to help us feel justified in our wrong thinking and acting. When we begin to lay out the pieces of ourselves, we must be careful to lay them before the Lord and to compare ourselves only to His Word. It is in this process of being open in fellowship with Him that true renewing of our minds occurs.

Our minds are renewed when we begin to see through eyes of faith. When we begin to see things as God sees them. Daily we must seek after God and be renewed. We need a fresh vision to take residence in our minds! We need God’s vision!


I applied this principle recently to a problem area in my life. When dealing with my own personal struggle to lose weight, I had to capture a new mindset for myself. I had to change some warped thinking. I had to quit telling myself I couldn’t do the work to lose weight because of the one hundred plus excuses I came up with. And--I had to quit waiting for someone to come along and do it for me.

I had to go before the Lord and ask for help. I desperately needed to be delivered from some very self-destructive habits!

And, I discovered a very powerful thought that frequently sabotaged my efforts. I noticed that I used excuses for overeating. Birthdays. A friend’s visit. Movie night. The weekend. Lots of little ‘celebrations‘. And each time, I would tell myself to go ahead and blow it off and start new tomorrow. Pretty soon I saw that each tomorrow seemed to hold its own celebration or excuse as to why I should, once again, put off eating right and exercising, until the next tomorrow. This was a very unhealthy pattern. One that left me needing to lose over 100 pounds!

One day as I was reading about the Proverbs 31 woman, I came across the scripture in verse 17 which states:


She girds herself with strength (spiritual, mental, and physical fitness for her God-given task) and makes her arms strong and firm.

That was a light bulb moment for me. It was as if the Lord jumped right off of that page and spoke those words directly to me. I realized that I was not trapped in an overweight body without the power to change. I realized that I was not on this journey alone. God wanted me to be physically fit! He would not call me to do something that He would not empower me to do. I was not alone! He was my strength. He was not asking me to do it on my own, but asking me to surrender to Him to do it in His strength.

That moment I caught a glimpse of a much more fit me through the eyes of a loving Father. I saw that He wanted that for me. He desired that too! It was an empowering revelation. And, it was the start to my own renewed mindset concerning my body and my health.

I have cast off the old way of thinking and shredded the old habit that wanted me to ‘wait until tomorrow’ to get it together. We don’t have the promise of tomorrow. And Jesus prayed that God would give us our daily bread. Not weekly. Not monthly. Daily! He has given me wisdom concerning which new steps to take along my weight loss journey. And He has provided me the strength for each one. I even feel enthusiasm--born from the hope He placed in me that came from glimpsing how He saw me.

So--how about it? What are you waiting for? What lie(s) have you believed? What habit has kept you prisoner to a bad situation? Ask God to renew your mind. To give you a fresh vision. To help you see yourself through His eyes. Ask God to lead you and to allow you to make the necessary changes through His strength.

Feel Him beside you. You are not alone!

　

Sweet heavenly Father,

As we daily lay before you--sweep over us. Wash through us--scraping away the deposits of doubt and despair that have attached themselves. Swallow up the lies that the enemy has planted. Renew us in You and in Your purpose. Sweep our minds clean of anything other than what reflects You. Give us new vision to see ourselves and our circumstances as You do…with hope…with endless possibilities. Allow us the privilege of feeling Your presence and remind us throughout our day that we are not alone. That You are our strength. Go before us and be light to our pathway. Oh, Lord--heal us (of wrong thinking & doing) and we will be healed. Save us (from the results of skewed thinking) and we will be saved! (adapted from Jer. 17:14)

In Jesus Name,

Amen