“If your thinking is controlled by your sinful self, there is spiritual death. But if your thinking is controlled by the Spirit, there is life and peace.”
Romans 8:6 (ERV)
Making changes in any area of your life requires that you change the way you think. That’s because your brain is where God’s Spirit works in you.
God’s Spirit doesn’t work in your toes or your lungs or your nose. He works through your mind! We often use the metaphor of our heart being the place where God works. For example, we say, “I invited Jesus into my heart.” But your heart is really just a symbol for your brain. Your brain is where you think—so it’s in your mind that God begins the change process. It’s where the reset takes place.
The Bible says in Ephesians 4:23-24, “Let the Spirit change your way of thinking and make you into a new person” (CEV).
You were created to be like God. But that doesn’t happen instantly. To grow into someone who’s more like Jesus, you’re going to have to go through a lot of change in your life; you’re going to have a lot of resets. Becoming a new person in Christ starts with changing the way you think.
How does this work? When Satan suggests an idea in your mind, that’s called temptation. When God suggests an idea in your mind, that’s called inspiration.
It’s your choice every moment of your life which ideas you’re going to hold on to and which ones you’re going to reject. Whether you accept or reject a temptation or an inspiration is all up to you. You get to choose what ideas are going to control your life.
Romans 8:6 says, “If your thinking is controlled by your sinful self, there is spiritual death. But if your thinking is controlled by the Spirit, there is life and peace” (ERV).
God wants you to live a full, meaningful, purposeful life. He wants you to grow in faith and spiritual maturity.
But it’s your choice each moment of every day. In what ways does growing in spiritual maturity lead to a more meaningful life?
Teaching is a passion, and my experience as a teacher has been beautiful, emotional and fulfilling. Over the years, I’ve watched the student – teacher equation evolve: From Guru, as all-knowing to Guru as friend and equal, as someone who doesn’t always know the best. Today’s teacher and the learner are partners in the process of teaching and learning. We inspire, motivate and learn from each other; if I don’t know, I can admit it to my students. The teacher is only a facilitator; one who will help the student grow, become a self-learner. The teacher is only one of many sources. Not infrequently, there is a role reversal. With children being so tech-savy, often I am the student and they are my teachers. Has teaching changes the way I think ? Yes, most certainly. My students have shown me how to manage time. I marvel at how deftly they juggle sports, academics, dance, and theatre, for instance. I have learnt how to accept failure as I see my students taking success and failure with equan...
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