03/10
Renewing Your Mind
Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.
Romans 12:2
For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin— because anyone who has died has been set free from sin.
Romans 6:6-7
Two of the most important questions throughout history are “Who am I?” and “Why am I here?" At some point, everyone, including you, has pondered these questions and the various answers given to them. The answers to these questions or the labels they hold are known as your identity and purpose. Identity asks the question, who am I, and purpose asks the question, why am I here? These questions have endured for thousands of years and still as a whole of humanity, we are no closer to any sort of agreement on an answer. The good news is that the bible answers these questions; The bible tells you what your true Identity and Purpose are. The bad news is that the world offers a counterfeit or false version of your Identity & Purpose. The world we live in continually tells you who you are and why you are here on earth. The problem is that often the world's definition of identity and purpose run counter to the definitions and descriptions we find in God's word.
God loves us so much that he doesn’t force us to follow him, or the definitions or boundaries he has instituted. God doesn't force us to follow him or live in his identity and purpose for our lives. You get to choose which path you will walk. Romans 12 tells us that these different paths could be called a transformed life, or a conformed life. To be conformed to something means to be changed to fit a mold that is created by outside pressure. Given enough outside pressure, even steel can be molded to the shape of a mold. The same thing happens to people on a social and even spiritual level. Even if you aren't aware of it, your identity can be molded by social pressure, peer pressure, career pressure, and the lies of the world around you. You will change the way you think, talk, act and react based on being conformed or being transformed. To be transformed means that from the inside out, from the way you think, speak, and act, your identity and purpose will be molded according to the truth of God's word instead of the pressures of this world.
Romans 12:2
For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin— because anyone who has died has been set free from sin.
Romans 6:6-7
Two of the most important questions throughout history are “Who am I?” and “Why am I here?" At some point, everyone, including you, has pondered these questions and the various answers given to them. The answers to these questions or the labels they hold are known as your identity and purpose. Identity asks the question, who am I, and purpose asks the question, why am I here? These questions have endured for thousands of years and still as a whole of humanity, we are no closer to any sort of agreement on an answer. The good news is that the bible answers these questions; The bible tells you what your true Identity and Purpose are. The bad news is that the world offers a counterfeit or false version of your Identity & Purpose. The world we live in continually tells you who you are and why you are here on earth. The problem is that often the world's definition of identity and purpose run counter to the definitions and descriptions we find in God's word.
God loves us so much that he doesn’t force us to follow him, or the definitions or boundaries he has instituted. God doesn't force us to follow him or live in his identity and purpose for our lives. You get to choose which path you will walk. Romans 12 tells us that these different paths could be called a transformed life, or a conformed life. To be conformed to something means to be changed to fit a mold that is created by outside pressure. Given enough outside pressure, even steel can be molded to the shape of a mold. The same thing happens to people on a social and even spiritual level. Even if you aren't aware of it, your identity can be molded by social pressure, peer pressure, career pressure, and the lies of the world around you. You will change the way you think, talk, act and react based on being conformed or being transformed. To be transformed means that from the inside out, from the way you think, speak, and act, your identity and purpose will be molded according to the truth of God's word instead of the pressures of this world.
TODAY'S CHALLENGE
Think about this concept in your own life. Have you allowed yourself to be molded and conformed based on the pressures of this world, or, are you living a transformed life that is grounded in the truth of God's word?