“People want life and peace. . . . Those who thrive have their minds set on what the Spirit desires, and those who fail give attention to what the sinful nature desires. One mind-set leads to life and peace, while the other leads to a kind of death in our relationships, families, and careers.”- Bob Merritt
“Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace.”- Romans 8:5-6 (NIV)
In today’s blog Bob Merritt continues Chapter 6 of Done With That. He talks about why we should care about renewing our minds. When the apostle Paul used the word life in Romans 8:6, he meant more than simply being alive. In fact, the word Paul used, zoe, means life to the full. Consequently, Paul referred to a life full of love, joy, peace, and relational and spiritual wholeness.
As a result, it’s possible to find contentment whether or not you go through a good or bad day. Furthermore, ‘what goes in must come out’ represents more than just a saying. Writing in Mind Siege, Tim LaHaye and David Noebel noted this about the brain:
“Your brain . . . controls hearing, sight, smell, speech, eating, resting, learning, prejudices, and everything else that makes you behave as you do . . . .
What we choose to see and hear about how we think (our philosophy of life) are the most significant influences on our lives, and they greatly affect all three major aspects of the mind: intellect, emotion, and will. . . .
Since the eyes and ears are the two most important channels for communicating with the brain, how you employ these information gatherers largely determines how you think. And be sure of this: How you think will determine the way you live!”
Today’s question: What Bible verses encourage a mind-set of life and peace? Please share.
Tomorrow’s blog: “Purify the stream – block negative influences”
