Transformed Thinking

Here is a short devotion I wrote for church camp this summer. I thought I'd share it here.

Transforming My Thinking
Jared Altic

Have you ever daydreamed about winning a million dollars? How about 100 million? Do you spend time imagining yourself to be wealthy, beautiful, successful, and powerful? Quickly those dreams begin to include the fulfillment of every desire: your enemies are humbled and your fantasies come true.

But have you ever thought of your daydreams from God’s perspective? Would He want you to be so rich that you forgot your need for Him? Would He want you to treat your enemies the way they have treated you? In fact, how does God feel about you scheming and plotting and thinking the way everybody else does in this world?

Shouldn’t our thoughts be different?

Romans 8:5-8 (NLT) says: “Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit. So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace. For the sinful nature is always hostile to God. It never did obey God’s laws, and it never will. That’s why those who are still under the control of their sinful nature can never please God.”

When God transforms us, our minds begin to change. We can’t possibly see the world as we used to see it, but rather as God sees it. We have different priorities. We value things and people differently than before. We understand God’s will for our lives.

Read Romans 12:2 and 2Corinthians 5:17.

Now daydream. Imagine yourself as successful in God’s eyes – someone who stands up for the truth every time. Picture yourself as a person who is faithful for a lifetime, always seeing the challenges of this life as God sees them.

Spend time in prayer, asking God to transform your thinking.