2022-05-18
Proverbs 4:23 GNT
Someone has wisely said, “You’re not what you think you are, but what you think – you are.” Lasting change always begins with new thinking. How do you become a Christian? By repenting of your sin and placing your trust in Christ. The Greek word for repentance is metanoia, and it means to change your mind. We’re not changed by willpower, but by the transforming power of God’s Word when we use it to renew our minds each day.
The Bible clearly teaches that the way we think determines the way we feel, and the way we feel determines the way we act. So if you want to change your actions, you have to return to the source and change the way you think. At times you may act resentful. Why? Because you feel resentful. And do you know why you feel resentful? Because you are thinking resentful thoughts. The same is true of anger, worry, lust, and other destructive thought patterns.
Jesus said, “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:32 NLT). When you base your life on truth – when you live with the right kind of thoughts, not misconceptions or false beliefs, and you base your life on thinking from God’s Word – you will be set free. You will find your old habits, feelings, and actions beginning to fall away. When you focus solely on removing bad thoughts, you create a vacuum into which the bad thoughts can return. But when you replace bad thoughts with good ones – scriptural ones – you are empowered by God to live the life of blessing He wants you to enjoy.
Soul food: Num 32:25-33:56; Matt 10:11-20; Ps 72:1-11; Pro 11:19-21
Proverbs 4:23 GNT
Someone once said, ‘You’re not what you think you are, but what you think – you are.’ Lasting change always begins with new thinking. We become Christians by repenting of our sins and putting our trust in Christ. The Greek word for repentance is metanoia, and it means ‘to change your mind’. We’re not changed by willpower, but by the transforming power of God’s Word when we use it to renew our minds each day.
The Bible clearly teaches that the way we think determines the way we feel, and the way we feel determines the way we act. That means if we want to change our actions, we have to go right back to the source and change the way we think. Think about a time you acted with anger. You acted that way because you felt angry. And those feelings of anger stemmed from angry thoughts. The same idea applies to resentment, worry, lust, and other destructive or damaging thought patterns.
Jesus said, ‘You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free’ (John 8:32 NLT). When we base our lives on truth, when we live with the right kind of thoughts, rather than misconceptions or false beliefs, and when we base our lives and thinking on God’s Word – we will be set free. We’ll find old, unhelpful habits, feelings, and actions beginning to fall away. When we only focus on removing bad thoughts, we leave a gap in our minds that can let the bad thoughts back in. But when we replace bad thoughts with good, scriptural ones, God fills our minds and empowers us to live the lives He has planned for us to enjoy.
Num 32:25-33:56; Matt 10:11-20; Ps 72:1-11; Pro 11:19-21
2022-05-17
Spreuke 20:30 NLV
Nog ‘n manier hoe God ons verander, is deur omstandighede. Probleme, druk, hartseer, moeilikheid en stres trek altyd ons aandag. C.S. Lewis het gesê: ‘Pyn dring daarop aan dat ons aandag daaraan gee. God fluister vir ons in ons plesier, maar skree vir ons in ons pyn.’ Die Bybel sê: ‘En ons weet dat God alles ten goede laat saamwerk vir hulle wat Hom liefhet… Want God het hulle reeds vooruit geken, en Hy het hulle aangewys om soos sy Seun te word…’ (Romeine 8:28-29 NLV). Niks kan in jou lewe sonder jou hemelse Vader se toestemming, gebeur nie.
Die interessante ding oor hoe God omstandighede gebruik, is dat die bron daarvan geen verskil vir Hom maak nie. Ons bring dikwels probleme oor onsself. Soms word dit deur ander mense veroorsaak. Ander kere weer sorg die Vyand dat daar dinge met ons gebeur. Die bron van die omstandighede is egter irrelevant. God het gesê: ‘Ek sal dit by my plan vir jou lewe laat inpas, om jou soos Jesus Christus te maak.’ Dit beteken dat daar geen omstandighede is waaruit ons nie iets kan leer nie. Hoekom het Salomo gesê: “‘n Pak slae suiwer die kwaad. Dit maak die binnekant skoon”? Omdat ons slegs kan verander wanneer ons vrees vir verandering deur ons pyn oorskry word.
As jy meer soos Jesus wil word, dink oor die volgende Skrifgedeelte na: ‘Selfs al was Hy die Seun, het Hy gehoorsaamheid geleer deur wat Hy gely het’ (Hebreërs 5:8 NLV). As God die uitdagings, konflikte en omstandighede van die lewe gebruik het om sy Seun vir sy doelwit voor te berei, sal Hy dan ook nie dieselfde in ons lewens doen nie? In plaas daarvan om dus vanuit jou omstandighede te probeer ontsnap, leer uit hulle en word sterker.
Sielskos: Num 30:1-32:24; Matt 10:1-10; Ps 22; Spr 11:16-18
Proverbs 20:30 NIV
Another way God changes us is through circumstances. Problems, pressures, sorrows, hardships, and stress always get our attention. C.S. Lewis said, “Pain insists on being attended to. God whispers to us in our pleasures… but shouts to us in our pain.” The J.B. Phillips translation of Romans 8:28-29 reads: “To those who love God, who are called according to his plan, everything that happens fits into a pattern for good… God… chose them to bear the family likeness of his Son.”
Nothing can come into your life without your heavenly Father’s permission; it must be “Father filtered.” The interesting thing about how God uses circumstances is that their source makes no difference to Him. We often bring problems on ourselves. Sometimes they’re caused by other people. Other times the Enemy causes things to happen to us. But the source of the circumstances is irrelevant. God said, “I will make it fit into my plan for your life, to make you like Jesus Christ.” That means there is no circumstance from which we can’t learn if we maintain the right attitude.
Why did Solomon say, “Blows and wounds scrub away evil, and beatings purge the inmost being”? Because we change only when our fear of change is surpassed by our pain. If you want to become more like Jesus, think about this: “Though He was a Son… He learned obedience by the things which He suffered” (Hebrews 5:8 NKJV). If God used the challenges, conflicts, and circumstances of life to prepare His Son for His destiny, won’t He do the same in our lives? So instead of trying to escape your circumstances, learn from them and grow stronger.
Soul food: Num 30:1-32:24; Matt 10:1-10; Ps 22; Pro 11:16-18
Romans 8:28 NKJV
Another way God changes us is through circumstances. Problems, pressures, disappointments, sorrows, hardships, and stress always get our attention. C.S. Lewis said, ‘Pain insists on being attended to. God whispers to us in our pleasures… but shouts to us in our pain.’ The J.B. Phillips translation of Romans 8:28-29 reads: ‘To those who love God, who are called according to his plan, everything that happens fits into a pattern for good. God, in his foreknowledge, chose them to bear the family likeness of his Son.’
God won’t always take us out of bad situations, but He will use them to bring about change within us. The interesting thing about how God uses circumstances is that their source makes no difference to Him. We might bring problems on ourselves because we didn’t listen to God or didn’t seek His wisdom in the first place. Sometimes they’re caused by other people, and sometimes the Enemy causes things to happen to us. But the source of the circumstances is irrelevant. God can and will use them all. He’s saying, ‘I will make it fit into my plan for your life, to make you more Christ-like.’
That means we can learn something from every circumstance we find ourselves in, if we have the right attitude towards it. Hebrews 5:8 tells us that ‘Even though Jesus was the Son of God he learned obedience by what he suffered’ (NCV). If God used the challenges, conflicts, and circumstances of life to prepare His own Son for His destiny, He’ll surely do the same in our lives. Jesus understands how hard it can be, but instead of trying to escape our circumstances, let’s remember God’s at work through them, learn from them and use them to grow stronger.
Num 30:1-32:24; Matt 10:1-10; Ps 22; Pro 11:16-18
