INTRODUCING THE SERIES: 9 Pillars
1. MY THOUGHTS CONTROL MY LIFE BUT I CAN CONTROL MY THOUGHTS!
"Be carefulwhat you think about because your thoughts run your life!" Proverbs 4:23 (NCV)
". . . your life is shaped by your thoughts." (TEV)
2. ANY CHANGE I WANT IN MY LIFE MUST START IN MY MIND
"Do not conform yourselves to the standards of this world, but let God transform you inwardly by a complete change of your mind." Romans 12:2 (TEV)
"You're blessed when you get your inside world—your mind and heart—put right. THEN you can see God in the outside world." Matthew 5:8 (Mes)
3. I CAN CHANGE HOW I FEEL BY CHANGING HOW I THINK
David: "My heart is breaking, so I turn my thoughts to God." Ps. 42:6 (TEV)
Jonah: "When I'd lost all hope, I TURNED my thoughts once more to the Lord." Jonah 2:7 (NLT)
THINK –> FEEL –> ACT
4. EVERY BEHAVIOR IS BASED ON A BELIEF
"Think carefully about your behavior." Haggai 1:5 (NJB)
ASK: WHAT AM I BELIEVING RIGHT NOW?
"A foolish person will believe anything. But a wise person thinks about what he does." Prov. 14:15 (ICB)
5. ANYTIME I SIN, AT THAT MOMENT I'M BELIEVING A LIE!
"There are many ways that we THINK are right but they lead to death." Prov. 14:12 (NJB)
"Temptation comes from the lure of our own inner desires. These evil desires lead to evil actions, and the actions lead to death." Jam. 1:14-15 (NLT)
ASK: WHAT LIE AM I BELIEVING?
6. AN UNSEEN WAR IS GOING ON IN AND FOR MY MIND
"It seems to be a fact of life that while I want to do what is right, I inevitably do what is wrong. I want to do God's will so far as my new nature is concerned; but there's something else deep within me that is at war with my mind and wins the fight and makes me a slave to the sin inside me. In my mind I want to be God's servant, but instead I find myself still enslaved to sin." Rom. 7:21-23 (LB)
7. TO WIN THE BATTLE IN & FOR MY MIND, I MUST HAVE GOD'S SPIRIT AND GOD'S WORD INSIDE ME
While we live in the world, we don't fight the same way the world does. We fight with God's weapons, not worldly ones. Our weapons have God'spower to demolish the enemy's strong places. We can knock down all the worldly arguments and prideful defenses that set themselves up (in our minds) against the knowledge of God. In this war, we capture every rebelthought and we make it give up, and obey Christ!" 2 Cor. 10:3-5
"If your sinful nature controls your mind, there is death. But if the Holy Spirit controls your mind, there is life and peace." Rom. 8:6 (NLT)
Jesus: "If you learn and obey my Word, you will be my disciple. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." John 8:31-32
8. MY GOAL IS TO LEARN TO THINK LIKE JESUS
"Since Jesus went through everything you're going through, and more, learn to think like him." 1 Peter 4:1 (Mes)
"Your thoughts and attitudes must be the same as that of Christ Jesus." Phil. 2:5
"We have the mind of Christ!" 1 Cor. 2:16
9. RETHINKING MY LIFE TO MATCH HOW JESUS THINKS IS CALLED REPENTING
METANOIA = TO CHANGE YOUR MIND
"Repent - change your mind and return back to God - so that all your sins may be erased - blotted out and wiped clean – and so that times of refreshing . . . and recovering . . . and reviving . . . may come from the presence of the Lord!" Acts 3:19 (Amp)
JESUS: "I know your good deeds, your hard work, and your perseverance . . . But I've noticed this: You don't love me as much as you used to at first. So REMEMBER what it was like before you fell away, and REPENT - change your mind and attitude, and RETURN to doing the things you did with me at first!" Rev. 2:2,4-5
Action Plan: In preparation for this series:
- If you don't have a daily quiet time reading God's word, start today in the Gospel of Matthew.
- Start memorizing verses this week by memorizing Psalm 42:6.
- For this series, prepare a list of areas in your life that you know are self-defeating or causing you pain (emotional, spiritual, physical). Next to each item you wrote down, try to answer the question "What am I thinking each time I do this behavior or have this feeling?"
Doable Discipleship: This week's episode of Doable Discipleship continues a series on the parables of Jesus. This week dives deep into the theme of the Kingdom of God being first in our lives. New episodes release every Tuesday. To watch or listen, click here
Talk It Over: Have you ever discussed the weekend message in your small group? Talk It Over provides weekly small group discussion questions as a way to bring the weekend message into your small group. To view this week's Talk It Over, click here.
