Be Transformed

 

 

"And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God," 

(Romans 12:2).

 

 

This verse lays out clearly what is perhaps the greatest secret of life. The part that really stands out to me today though is, "be transformed by the renewing of your mind."

There's so much false information, false teaching and false narratives people are being distracted, deceived and led astray. The greatest battlefield today is the mind. We are depressed and brought down by thoughts in our heads that simply aren't true. And we allow them to remain there.

False thinking and false narratives need to be replaced with the Word of God—words from our Abba Father in Heaven. 

Too many people are prisoners of misinformation and deception. But they ignore the Biblical command to test all things and only hold fast to that which is good. People want personal, subjective experiences; the spiritual buzz. Faith in God and His Word simply isn't enough for many people today. 

Another ploy of Satan is to convince people "they can only be happy if they have this." Or, "I can't be happy without that."And there are a whole world of things and people that can fill-in those blanks. You know what yours are. I'm aware of my own.

God doesn't command us to not be conformed to this world because He doesn't want us to enjoy ourselves. It's because He knows the things of the world can never satisfy us. That, and conformity with the world sends a mixed message. We're supposed to come out and be separate—be different than the world. 

"Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him," (1 John 2:15).

You ever get the idea God is an all-or-nothing God? Verses like 1 John 2:15 prove it. That's a brutally powerful statement: "The love of the Father is not in him"—you can have all this world offers me, just let me never be accused of that.

A dark and scary prison people allow themselves to be trapped in is unforgiveness. They simply won't free themselves from those cold iron bars. Forgiveness is not saying what someone did to you was okay. It's not okay. 

No, what you are doing when you choose to forgive someone from your heart is free yourself of your own bitterness towards them. But you have to make the proclamation; "I am not going to let this person keep me imprisoned by my hatred and bitterness towards them." You are releasing them from the self-imposed prison of your own unforgiving heart. But you are the one who is truly being set free.

I'm not saying this is easy—it's survival.

But like anything else, forgiveness is a choice. You have to choose to change your own thinking—be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

And let me tell you... God is in the transformation business.

If you let Him.

—God is Love and Love Never Fails.