This past week Good Morning Girls focused on the role of our minds in living intentionally focused lives. What we found is that God wants us to turn our thoughts and our minds to the eternal. He wants us to focus on what is truly important; those things which will last forever, like Him, His word, and human souls. We are only truly able to do this by submitting ourselves to the power of Holy Spirit for renewal. This turns out to be difficult at times because it requires dying to ourselves; letting go of pride, ceasing to chase comfort and temporary satisfaction, and learning to live for God's glory, rather than our own.
The things which have stuck out to me during my study this week are:
The power of our minds over the rest of our lives and behaviors. Scripture's commands to set our minds on the eternal is often the first command preceding a long list of behaviors we are to "lay aside" and some we are to "put on," indicating that the first step of focusing our minds is crucial to achieving the God-honoring behaviors Scripture demands of Christ-followers.
The spiritual battle, unseen to us, over control of our minds. God is not the only one who recognizes the power of a mind focused on eternity. Satan would love nothing more than to distract us from focusing on that which truly matters. He would love to keep us in believing lies and focused on ourselves and has devised many crafty ways to do so. And thus, it is important to recognize and defend ourselves against the evil one's attacks.
Renewal of the mind is the work of the Spirit but requires submission. What a relief that God accomplishes this work in us by His power! But He will not force it on us. We have to desire His renewal and be willing to give up our selfish desires and the pursuit of our own glory. Romans 12 refers to this act of submission as "a living sacrifice."
A renewed mind focuses on heaven's priorities. Heaven's priority is people! Philippians 4 commands us to focus on truth, honesty, justice, and purity; things that will get and keep a good reputation for believers through our interactions with others, making Christianity attractive and well-respected. And Colossians shows how an eternal perspective is the first step in laying aside of relationship-killing qualities and putting on of relationship building qualities. God cares about people. If we care about what God cares about, we will care about people and how our relationships can be used by God to impact eternity.
3 practical ways to focus our minds:
1) Let the peace of Christ rule in your heart (Colossians 3:15) by casting all anxiety on Him in prayer (Philippians 4:6-7)
2) Let the word of Christ richly dwell in you (Colossians 3:16)
3) Practice thanksgiving (Philippians 4:5, Colossians 3:17)
God has really used the this week's study in me- praise Him! Here are a couple of ways the application of this new understanding has affected me:
I have a heightened awareness of spiritual warfare going on in my life. I have been praying for conviction to come quickly when I start getting distracted by worldly concerns or when my thoughts reflect any falsehood that I have allowed myself to believe. God has been faithfully answering those prayers. In response, I have been laying the anxieties and cares of this world on Christ and claiming the peace that He offers, peace that frees me to dwell on eternal matters. I have also been intentionally practicing gratitude when I start feeling defeated, which has had a huge effect on the state of my mind.
As the Spirit has been renewing my mind and I am learning all over again that it is not about me and if I want to fulfill my God-given purpose on this planet, in this brief life, I must die to myself, my pride, my comfort, my glory, and continually submit myself, beginning with my mind, to Christ. As I walk down that path, dying to myself, and seeking the eternal, it has changed how I see people. When I look at my children, I see their eternal souls instead of all the things that exhaust me about them. When I look at my husband, I see someone for whom God has a unique purpose for God's glory rather than someone whose main purpose is making me happy. When I look at my friends, I see vessels for God's glory rather than competitors. When I see people closer to how God sees them, I am able to treat them more like God would treat them.
If you want to learn more, look up the following references and see for yourself:
Romans 8:1-8, Ephesians 4:22-24, Romans 12:1-2, Philippians 4:5-8, Philippians 1:9-11, 2 Corinthians 10:1-5, Ephesians 6:10-18, Colossians 3:1-17
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