Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
-Romans 12:1-2
How often do you think, “I wonder what’s going on in that person’s mind”? Whether it’s out of curiosity or concern, we think about other people’s minds a lot. The mind holds what’s expressed outwardly. It’s an interesting place! It holds our thoughts, beliefs, memories, and actions. Everything that makes us who we are is held in the mind. Crazy, right? What’s crazier is that the mind can physically change. That’s why Scripture talks about the renewing of our minds.
Romans 12:2 says, “Do not conform to the pattern of the world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” The author of Romans is telling us that, through Jesus, our minds can be made new! Our minds hold struggles, addictions, insecurities, and beliefs about ourselves that can change. The work of Jesus isn’t simply an outward expression but an inward renewal.
When Jesus is Lord of your mind, you think differently—not because you act differently, but because you’re renewed. Your relationship with Jesus becomes physical and tangible in your mind. You begin to express joy, peace, patience, and kindness because you’re physically changing.
So, how is Jesus Lord of your mind? What are you praying Jesus helps you shift in your mind?
In a world filled with anxiety from financial instability, job stress, and personal struggles, it seems impossible to escape the constant worry that overtakes our minds and hearts. However, in the Kingdom of God, peace is meant to be the norm. While external stressors will always exist, our response to them can be transformed. As believers, we're called to seek God's Kingdom first, laying down our burdens and embracing His peace. To practice this peace, we can engage in prayer and journaling, focusing on God's promises and allowing the Prince of Peace to calm our anxious hearts.
Raising a family on Godly values can be challenging, but it’s crucial to keep God at the center. Regardless of your upbringing, God’s purpose and design for families remain constant. Reflect on God’s mission for families, find your allegiance, identity, and calling in Christ, and connect with a spiritual family for support. Joining a group can help you build a strong spiritual foundation for your family. Consider finding a group through 12stone.com/groups this week.
How forgiveness is handled in the Kingdom is different than how it’s handled outside the Kingdom. We know the Kingdom of God has a King, a culture, and a calendar, but it also has a code. The world’s code tells us to “get even.” But the Kingdom Code of Conduct instructs us to approach life differently. For followers of Jesus, the Kingdom Code that governs relationships is forgiveness. But sometimes forgiveness can be complicated. We need to forgive, and we need to be forgiven.
The Kingdom of God is a love story set in the backdrop of war. A biblical approach to understanding spiritual warfare is necessary as a Christian to know how to fight against the devil’s schemes. A lot of people struggle to believe in Jesus, but it’s more difficult to deny the power of evil in this world. That is spiritual warfare! For some reason the idea of evil and supernatural forces of darkness makes us feel uncomfortable! It is important for us to learn how to fight these supernatural forces with Kingdom power and Biblical principles! God has already won the war, but we need to equip ourselves to know how to fight our battles!
We are in a complex season as a country, marked by division and political segmentation. By focusing on the Kingdom of God, which Jesus emphasized throughout His ministry we can take steps to live wisely. Jesus proclaimed the nearness of God’s Kingdom, gave us authority to make disciples, and taught us to pray for its coming on earth as it is in heaven. Our responsibility is to commit to living out a Kingdom perspective in every aspect of our lives—relationships, careers, finances, and more—living to reflect Heaven’s reality here on earth.
As we’ve learned in past weeks of our hymn series, hymns are used to pass faith from one generation to the next. "How Great Thou Art" is a hymn that follows a roadmap to show us many different attributes of God and His faithfulness. We know that God is love. We know that He is Truth, but sometimes we can forget about His power, His presence, and His promises. Our lives are filled with different seasons and circumstances where we get to see different characteristics of God in fresh ways. This hymn reminds us of that!
Over the past few weeks, we have explored hymns that have influenced past generations. Today, we focused on a hymn that is shaping our generation and those to come, proclaiming the promise of new life in Jesus. It's easy to say yes to Jesus, yet many of us remain trapped in our old ways. Our sins imprison us, but Jesus has paid the ultimate price for our freedom, allowing us to find new life in Him. Key reflections from today include: recognizing that following Jesus transforms us into new creations, understanding that sin is a destructive force, not a trivial amusement, and realizing that our goal should be to draw closer to Jesus, not just to avoid sin. This week, spend time in prayer, confessing the worldly things that hold you back. Identify your personal "jail cell" and lay it at the feet of Jesus.
In difficult times, finding true joy can be challenging, often leading us to either ignore our emotions or try to control everything to prevent bad outcomes. Neither approach is effective. Instead, we can learn from King David in the Psalms, who shows us a different path: he wrestles honestly with his feelings, speaks God’s truth over them, and eventually, his feelings align with the truth he believes. To experience true joy in tough circumstances, we must turn to God's truth and love, finding joy in who God is rather than in changing our circumstances.
Exploring hymns from our past help us find confidence in our present and hope for our future. Hymns are the testimony of one generation’s faith to the next. Today, we still write hymns as a way to pass our faith onto the next generation. When something is good, you can’t stop talking about it. When something is bad, you can’t stop talking about it. Our words carry weight. God has given each of us a testimony, and there is power in that testimony.
Our hope for you is to understand that Church is not merely a physical building or a service you attend; it is a family to which you belong. You are the Church, embodying Jesus and forming a family around Him. While the works we do for God are important, our love for Him is paramount. God has started a good work in each of us and will continue to grow that work until we meet Jesus. The most important thing God desires is a personal relationship with you. As you move through the summer, consider making July a month dedicated to knowing God more deeply. Spend daily time with Him, not as a task to be checked off, but as an invitation to grow your relationship with Jesus. Reflect on the significance of loving God more than the works you do for Him, and pray for guidance on how to deepen your connection with Him.
