Change Your Thinking, Change Your Life!

² Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. Romans 12:2 (NIV)

We are transformed by the renewing of our minds. This is God’s plan! We all have a lot of thinking that needs to be changed, but if you change your thinking, you will change your life!

One reason for this need might be that trauma has impacted how we see the world. There is a high association between trauma and depression and other mental illnesses. Diane Langberg even says that trauma is the mission field of the 21st century! Trauma can press you into a way of thinking about God and about yourself that keeps you locked in a place of darkness and despair. 

One of my cousins suffered from something like this. He genuinely seemed to want a relationship with God, but he would constantly go in and out of that relationship, largely due to drug abuse. Not too long after I became a follower of Jesus in my 20s, I had a conversation with my cousin. He was in a down season of life. The thing that really struck me was his almost tearful, almost desperate statement: “I just can’t relate to God as my Father because I didn’t have the love of a father growing up.”

I don’t know how my cousin’s home life was, but apparently it wasn’t a loving home. Unfortunately, probably just a couple of years after that conversation, my cousin wandered out into some woods on a cold winter’s night and never returned home. We never knew what happened to him until a couple of years after that, when a bone was found that proved to be his. That’s a horrific story, I know. It was a major challenge for me to preach his memorial service. Sadly, there are too many stories like this one, resulting from ways of thinking that have been shaped by the harm people have experienced. What a mission field we have! 

Why Do I Need to be Renewed?

You may think, “That’s way more dramatic than anything I have to deal with.” Even without trauma, our thinking needs to be renewed. The natural condition of our thinking before we are regenerated through faith in Jesus Christ is darkened, futile, and antagonistic toward God. We all need to be transformed by the renewing of our minds. Even after coming to Christ we continue to be transformed. Our minds are the battlefield. Whether we are talking about the spiritual growth of all followers of Jesus, or the mental health issues we sometimes struggle with, we can be transformed by the renewing of our minds. Let’s examine further:

Romans 12:1 tell us to offer our bodies as living sacrifices. Verse 2 tells us how to do that: first, by refusing to be shaped by the world’s mold. That’s not just about evil desires–it’s about wrong thinking about God and about yourself. Second, you offer your body as a living sacrifice by renewing your mind. Then you will be on track for God’s good, perfect, and pleasing will for your life! 

Spiritual Resources for Transformation

I’m not saying this is just automatic and easy. Nobody, however healthy mentally, just glides into transformed thinking. Everyone I know is dealing with some kind of stronghold in their thinking, in their minds. It is a battle. As we have said, we can’t just snap ourselves out of depression. Just reciting a bunch of positive Bible verses won’t automatically change us. But we are not helpless, hopeless, or powerless when it comes to mental health.

⁷ For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. 2 Timothy 1:7 (NKJV)

The word translated “sound mind” or “self-discipline” has a broad range of meaning, but “sound mind” is an excellent translation. It’s right thinking without illusion. It’s the same word used in Mark 5:15 about the man who had the demon cast out and was found in his “right mind.” As much as I want to affirm that usually there is a process that leads to wholeness, we can’t ignore the supernatural power of God to give us a “sound mind.” 

Here’s another family story: My grandmother was prescribed what she called her “nerve pills” for anxiety–valium or something like it. One day she went into Turnage Drug Store in Water Valley, Mississippi, to renew her prescription. As she turned to walk away from the pharmacy counter at the back of the store, prescription in hand, the pharmacist said something totally unusual for a pharmacist. You might even say it was something unwise to say to people who are struggling with mental health issues. He said, “Mrs. Melton, if you ask God to heal you, you won’t need that medicine anymore.” My grandmother said she turned back to Mr. Turnage and said, “OK, you pray for me.” The pharmacist prayed, and something supernatural happened! My grandmother left her prescription on the counter, and she never needed it again.

Whether God does it dramatically, in an instantaneous miracle, or he does it through medication, through counseling, or any other process, the truth still remains: you don’t have to do this in your own power! God has given you his power, his love, and he will give you a sound mind. When we have inordinate fear or depression, let’s be clear that these are not from God and they are not his will for our lives. God has something better for you! 

Not only do we have God’s help in attaining a sound mind, but, even better, we have the mind of Christ!

¹⁶ for, “Who has known the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ. 1 Corinthians 2:16 (NIV)

The truth that Paul is conveying here is that the Holy Spirit knows the mind of the Lord, and we have the Holy Spirit. Because we have the Holy Spirit, we have access to the mind of Christ. He is working in you to will and to act according to his good pleasure. You are not doing this on your own! You do, however, have to make some choices. 

The Power to Make Choices

We make choices about where to focus our thoughts. Paul was being accused by some of the Corinthians of living by the standards of this world (he wasn’t spiritual enough for them). Paul defends himself by describing his way of life in 2 Cor. 10:5.

⁵ We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. 2 Corinthians 10:5 (NIV)

This sounds like sheer willpower, but God has wired this in us. Dr. Curt Thompson, the psychiatrist who wrote the excellent book “The Soul of Shame,” focuses on how biblical truth and neurobiology are involved in rewiring our thinking. Our thinking actually gets hardwired into our brains as we develop new neurological pathways–something called neuroplasticity. Dr. Caroline Leaf, a leading neuropsychologist and a follower of Jesus, has done some groundbreaking research in this area. To me, the idea that God made us this way doesn’t mean we just dismiss renewing of the mind as some biological phenomenon. It means we have the Holy Spirit, working through our will, to establish new ways of thinking that get imprinted on our minds. 

This is not just exercising thought control. It’s about directing our thoughts in a positive way. Yes, we demolish argument and take thoughts captive, but the goal is knowledge of God that leads to obedience to Christ. 

Focus on the Positive

One of my favorite verses is Philippians 4:8:

⁸ Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Philippians 4:8 (NIV)

In his book “Something’s Not Right,” Wade Mullen deals with abuse within the church. It is a depressing topic to read about, and is even more depressing to have to deal with it personally–to be the victim of it. It’s discouraging to read about recent moral failings of high-level leaders in the body of Christ. The solution is not to ignore it—or any other source of pain. We should definitely be dealing with it, but it doesn’t have to control our thinking.

Dr. Mullen wraps up his book by saying that his antidote is to focus on beauty. I would encourage you, in whatever pain, darkness, or depression you find yourself in, try to find something in your world that’s beautiful. I’ve talked about shifting my thinking from seeing yard mowing as a drudging chore, to working with God to beautify a small section of his creation. How can you do that in everyday life? God will show you. We need to create new neurological pathways, new ways of thinking, that focus on these things! 

Not only can we choose between the negative we see in the world and the beauty and goodness of God, but we can choose between the Spirit and the Flesh.

Choosing Between the Spirit and the Flesh 

⁵ Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. ⁶ The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. Romans 8:5–6 (NIV)

³ You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts in You. Isaiah 26:3 (NKJV)

This is easier said than done, I know! After we made the deal to move our church into this building, I was concerned that the building wasn’t adequate for a 500-seat auditorium. I remember a couple of times waking up in the middle of the night, almost in a panic with a thought that seemed to intrude on my sleep quite suddenly: THE CEILING IS TOO LOW! It was such a big, risky move at the time, that I had other anxieties, too. I had great, bold faith, for sure, but also anxiety would creep in.

I remember telling someone about it, and their remedy was Isaiah 26:3: “You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on” the Lord. Can I tell you what that did for my anxiety in the moment? NOTHING! But it remains true and, over time, I can assure you, it will bring you peace. It will become a hardwired pattern of thinking for you. Choose God. Choose the Spirit. Choose peace. 

Invitation: Metanoia

Did you know this: If you are a follower of Jesus, you came to him through a change of mind? That’s the way we come to Christ. Here’s a verse from one of Peter’s first sermons that proves it:

¹⁹ Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord, Acts 3:19 (NIV)

How do I get “change of mind” from this verse? The word “repent” here is literally “metanoia,” “change your mind.” Change your mind, turn to to God. Your sins will be wiped out and times of refreshing will come from the Lord. But even this change of mind you don’t have to do for yourself. After the first Gentiles became followers of Jesus as evidenced by the outpouring of his Spirit upon them, the Jerusalem church made this observation:

¹⁸ When they heard this, they had no further objections and praised God, saying, “So then, even to Gentiles God has granted repentance that leads to life.” Acts 11:18 (NIV)

God gave this the change of mind that leads to life! He’s giving that to you right now. Would you receive it?

To listen to this message and others in audio format, check out the podcast here!