Be transformed by the renewing of your mind. (Romans 12:2 NIV).
It seems like an easy enough instruction, but for minds that have been cemented in the same thought patterns for years—even decades—it isn’t easy at all. Fortunately, we have the help of a Spirit who lives and moves within us. Even so, we won’t be renewed passively. God doesn’t typically function that way. We have to take the inspiration and invitations he gives and respond to them.
The bottom line is this: You’ll never learn to think differently unless you do. You can’t remain in the same thought patterns and emotional cycles and expect any sort of change. That means very intentionally stepping out of old thought patterns and adopting new ones. You’ll have to choose new ways of thinking, practice them, and apply them. It may be uncomfortable at first; most of us have little experience thinking thoughts that are completely free of anxiety, frustration, disappointment, shame, and judgment. But that’s the mental environment God calls us to enter—a place of freedom, healing, and rest.
Try on your new thoughts daily. Get used to them. Let them shape who you are. That’s what transformation implies, and God wants you to settle for nothing less. Forsake the old, embrace the new, and think as you never have before.
