December 8, 2022

Romans 12: 2 (NIV)

Do not conform any longer 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.

In a complicated world with setbacks and dysfunctional situations that threaten to overwhelm us, the only thing I can change is myself.*

The renewing of my mind sounds like a process for which I need some step-by-step instructions. What is it and how do I do it? We understand what renewal of the mind is by first determining what it is not. It is not a feeling. True renewal of the mind may result in feeling good about yourself – but it could just as easily leave you feeling guilty if you are looking for a good feeling that doesn’t come.

Renewal makes me think of an expired driver’s license. Renewing my license is a joint activity between me and the Department of Motor Vehicles. The DMV won’t renew my license until I present it to them. I can’t renew it on my own. Likewise, I can’t successfully renew my mind unless I intentionally present it to the only agency that can update it. Sadly, unlike my driver’s license which doesn’t expire for six years, my mind needs daily renewal!

Renewal of the mind is the opposite of being conformed to the world.* As Christians, our appearance and our actions differentiate us from the rest of the world, but we must also think differently.  What we do and what we feel are not sufficient foundations of the Christian life.* Our mind is the dwelling place of who we really are. Be transformed, therefore, by the renewing of your mind through exposure to God’s word and his Spirit.

Spiritual formation is not the result of human energy, but of divine grace in partnership with God’s Spirit. This continual progress toward Christlikeness is cultivated through a vibrant relationship, not a set of rules or principles.*