Apprentice 2 Jesus

An Anglicostal Connecting to a Real World

Transformation of the Mind

Dan

This past Sunday I actually used all four texts of the Sunday reading in my message. I couldn’t even begin to dig into any one of them, but I felt the Lord had something from each passage to give to people in the congregation.

The ending passage was Romans 8 and the thought we left with was the need to renew the mind. The battle is in the mind. We cannot halt everything that comes at us through our eyes or our ears. What we CAN do is learn to put up “Kingdom filters” so we can control what stays in the mind.

We have water filters in a few places in our house. The filters try to capture the last small particles that the city water filtration can’t do so we the water we drink is a little better.

Even if we did not have that, the city water filtration system is built to try and purify water and keep a huge percentage of bad elements out of the water so that when we get water out of the tap it’s mostly pure and good for drinking.

On the other end is the sewer line. No big filters there, right? Just moving junk away from the house, out into the main sewer system where other lines have fed into it and you have no real filters. Nothing is meant to be caught there.

Most of the time I find our minds don’t have very good filters. They’re more like sewer drains. We just let everything in.

The conversation I want to extend this week for anyone in my church, or anyone reading my blog for that matter, is how do we work on transforming our minds? In Romans 8 Paul talks about setting our minds on the things of the Spirit. That is possible because as believer our minds are made alive by the Spirit. It is up to US to set up those Kingdom filters so that our minds are set on the Spirit and not on the junk of this world.

Please join this conversation as I post! I would LOVE to hear your thoughts. What is helping you renew your mind? What helps you filter out the junk we deal with all the time in our world?

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9 responses to “Transformation of the Mind”

  1. Nick Avatar
    Nick

    What helps me filter out junk?
    I need to be aware of what impurities I am most vulnerable to. There are many things the world throws at me that don’t trip me up or poison my mind. They simply don’t have a place for settling in my mind. However, there are those things the world blitzes me with that have a real possibility of settling in my mind and taking over. Step 1 is to know what those poisonous substances are or could be. Avoidance and accountability are the best measures of filtration for me. Be aware that voicing frustration over the junk is not filtering it though. Complaining is reactive not proactive.

    Reply
    1. Dan Avatar
      Dan

      What kinds of things do you do in the area of accountability?

      How do you determine what is “junk” in your own life?

      Reply
      1. Nick Avatar
        Nick

        I don’t…leave me alone. 🙂

  2. debbie Avatar
    debbie

    What helps me? I pay attention on how my spirit changes from being at peace to being at turmoil. it can be quite a battle, but recognizing what is robbing me is the key. also if i am letting in things of the world that will taint my character, my desire to to be like minded and christ-like, than i need to step back and do a reversal, shake it out and say no to it. because it isnt a forward moving thought for me and not a good witness to others.

    Reply
    1. Dan Avatar
      Dan

      Thanks. How have you come to a place where you know what your spirit is saying? How have you developed that sensitivity?

      Reply
  3. Dan Avatar
    Dan

    Nick… too funny!

    Reply
  4. Nick Avatar
    Nick

    Junk has changed with the seasons of life. Some of the things that came to mind yesterday as I prayed through Romans 8:
    What measuring sticks am I using in my own life? Is success based on the size of my home, the type of car I drive, the $ I have in the bank? How am I determining what I am measuring myself to? Am I believing and practicing “pull myself up by the bootstraps” or am I letting go of the bootstraps and letting God? What type of conversations am I having with my family and co-workers? Am I part of the gossip and rumor mill? What types of movies and shows do I watch and how do they influence what I consider desirable? What pictures do I see on TV, billboards, computer screens, catalogs, magazines (this especially hard as a guy who enjoys watching and reading sports)? What have I done lately to actively demonstrate my love for my wife? What words have I spoken into the live’s of my children? Who have I allowed to speak into my life this week?
    Accountability is not only about avoidance, but about action. I liked your word this weekend about our “default.” I think so many times we approach accountability as a way to help us avoid certain things. While I do need to avoid, it is not enough! Acountability also needs to include action items…what am I doing to think on the things that are noble, true, right, pure, lovely and admirable?

    Thank Dan for probing!

    Reply
  5. Jake Avatar
    Jake

    I was also thinking about the old analogy to “breathing” in our conversations with God in prayer. Confessing to Him our sins and asking Him to cleanse our minds are part of the “exhaling.” Asking Him to speak to us, examine us, guide and instruct us through His Word and the Spirit are all part of the “inhaling.” Breathe out… Breathe in… be renewed…

    Reply
    1. Dan Avatar
      Dan

      Jake, that is so incredibly helpful.

      Reply

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