With God’s Help and His Word, You Can Discipline Yourself to Renew Your Mind
In order to achieve the things that are important in life, both priorities and discipline are required. Without setting your priorities, your focus will be turned to the urgent or fun things in life. Without discipline, your important priorities will sit unattended. With God as your help, you can prioritize activities that will renew your mind and stimulate growth in Christ.
The Holy Spirit will partner with you in providing strength and conviction to operate in self-discipline. In addition, God doesn’t give you more than you can bear and He doesn’t ask you to do anything that you can’t achieve. The call in Romans 12:2 is to “be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” If you are ready to embark on that journey, let’s look at this daily routine for renewing your mind.
DISCIPLINE IS DOING WHAT YOU KNOW NEEDS TO BE DONE EVEN IF YOU DON’T WANT TO DO IT.
Start your Day with Worship and Gratitude
2 Minutes
Before you even get out of bed, turn your thoughts to the Lord. Set the tone for your day right from the start. If your morning doesn’t begin well, it will be difficult to have a good day. Negative thoughts are contagious and snowball into a storm of burdens and concerns. Instead, purpose in your heart to start the day praising God, OUT LOUD. Here are some ways to begin your day with worship and gratitude:
- Praise the Lord!
- I worship you today, Lord God.
- You are good all the time.
- I offer a sacrifice of praise to you even if I don’t feel like it. You are worthy!
- Thank you for a new day.
- Thank you that your new mercies each morning, you are faithful, God!
- I rejoice in your amazing love for me
- Thank you for dying on the cross for my sins
- Thank you for your resurrection power that is at work in me
- I am grateful that you never leave me or forsake me
- Thank you that you are close to the brokenhearted
- I bless your holy name this morning.
“Fix your eyes on Jesus”
Hebrews 12:2
Spend time Reading the Bible and Praying
5-30 minutes
Now that you are out of bed and are sipping on your morning brew, spend some time reading God’s word. You may have more time one day than another – that is okay. Don’t be legalistic about the duration; God wants to meet with you each day. Make a habit of daily devotions where you spend time in God’s word. If you need a place to start, try the book of Mark – or read a Psalm and a Proverb each day.
After your Bible reading, take some time to Pray. My suggestion is to start with a focus on God. Offer up a prayer of praise and be thankful for what He has done in your life. Keeping our focus on the Lord is key in renewing the mind. In addition, humble yourself before the Lord and confess your need for him. Tell Him what you are struggling with and ask Him to help you overcome your struggle today.
Recite Your Scriptures for Renewing the Mind
2-5 minutes
Now it is time to speak the word of God OUT LOUD. You will want to have some key verses written out on 3×5 cards or a piece of paper that you can reference. Go through your key Scriptures one by one. Here are some examples from: 10 Encouraging Scriptures on Renewing Your Mind.
- Isaiah 26:3 – You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.
- Philippians 4:8 (WEB) – Finally, brothers, whatever things are true, whatever things are honorable, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report; if there is any virtue, and if there is any praise, think about these things.
- Colossians 3:2 (WEB) – Set your mind on the things that are above, not on the things that are on the earth.
- Romans 12:1-2 – Don’t be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what is the good, well-pleasing, and perfect will of God.
- 2 Corinthians 10:4-5 (WEB) – For though we walk in the flesh, we don’t wage war according to the flesh; for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but mighty before God to the throwing down of strongholds, throwing down imaginations and every high thing that is exalted against the knowledge of God, and bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ;
If it doesn’t challenge you, it doesn’t change you.
Speak Out Your Confessions of Faith
2-5 minutes
After reciting your Scriptures OUT LOAD, pray through your Scriptures OUT LOUD. By that I mean to thank God for any promise in the verse and commit yourself to any command in the verse. For example:
- Isaiah 26:3 – I thank you that you will keep me in perfect peace, Lord. I commit to focusing my mind on you and I do trust in you!
- Philippians 4:8 – Lord, I commit myself to thinking about things that are good and praiseworthy. Remind me when my focus is distracted by the negative. Help me, Holy Spirit, to think about good things all day today.
- Colossians 3:2 – Today I will set my mind on things above, not on earthly things. Your Kingdom is real and your truth is supreme.
- Romans 12:2 – I will not be conformed to this world; With your help, I will be transformed as I renew my mind to your word.
- 2 Corinthians 10:4-5 – Thank you for equipping me with the ability to throw down strongholds and anything that comes against the knowledge of God. I will bring every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ with You as my help, Lord.
You may want to add other faith confessions to this list that are specific to your situation. If you are struggling with fear, say: “God has not given me a spirit of fear. I will not fear but will trust in God.” If you are struggling with self-esteem issues, say: “I am a child of God. I am fearfully and wonderfully made. God loves and values me so much He died for my sins.”
Include Exercise in Your Daily Routine
15-30 minutes
Exercise may seem like an odd suggestion in this list of spiritual activities. But, because you are a three part being (body, soul, spirit), you can’t ignore your body. The body affects the soul and vice versa. The process of renewing our mind is primarily focused on addressing the soul-realm (our mind, will, and emotions). Exercise is helpful in this renewal process because it helps to focus the mind and make us feel better.
Start where you are comfortable starting! You don’t to be an athlete or a runner to exercise. Your exercise plan can be as extravagant or as simple as you like. If you can get out and walk for 15-30 minutes, great! If you have a gym membership and you can workout there, great! The goal is to work some form of exercise into your schedule EVERY day.
For though a righteous man falls seven times, he will rise again, but the wicked stumble into calamity.
Proverbs 24:16
The Ongoing Battle
This is very important: Decide ahead of time what Bible verse or phrase you will use to correct your thinking when it goes astray. Keep alert and remember where the battle occurs: in your mind. In our daily lives, we are each tempted to think in ways that forget about God. If you find yourself thinking about your struggles or operating in worry or fear, you need a way to refocus on the Lord. Therefore, choose ahead of time how you will respond. Here are some ideas.
- That’s not my thought. I am a child of God.
- Lord, I am feeling afraid, but you say “do not fear”. I know you are in control. I trust in You, Lord.
- When troubling thoughts won’t leave, say “God is an ever-present help. I choose to dwell in the shelter of the Most High. I reject these thoughts and choose to thank you God for salvation in Jesus’ name.”
- God says I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
- God who began a good work in me will be faithful to complete it. I love you, Lord.
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.
Hebrews 12:1-2
The Evening Review
5-10 minutes
Finally, at the end of the day, before your head rests on the pillow, ask God how you did today. Think about your thoughts during the day.
- Did your thoughts wander from good things to burdens?
- Were you able to use your key Scripture or faith confession to refocus?
- Did you dwell more on the negative or the positive?
Rejoice in your victories!
Confess your failures and dedicate yourself to staying in the fight.
Thank God for His presence and help throughout the day.
Give Him Praise for He is good – and have a good night’s sleep.
Summary
It will require setting priorities and applying discipline to establish a daily routine of renewing your mind. Consider asking a trusted friend to be an accountability partner to help on this journey or renewing your mind. Keep persevering to this goal: to establish a pattern for dealing with negative thinking to retrain yourself to think in positive ways.
- Start the day with worship and gratitude
- Spend time reading the Bible and Praying
- Recite Your Scriptures for Renewing the Mind
- Speak Out Your Confessions of Faith
- Include Daily Exercise
- Be Aware of the Ongoing Battle and Fight
- Review Your Day
Going Deeper on Renewing the Mind
Add these resources to your library – Christian Resources for Renewing Your Mind.