Just Breathe: Hope And Help For Those Drowning In The Pain Of AddictionSample

Think a Whole New Way Part 2

My part and your part in this transformation is changing the way we think. We have to renew our minds to a whole new way of thinking. My friend told me, “You can’t solve a problem with the same mind that created it!” You’ve got to change your mind. 

There are two words that have helped me do this: feed and focus. What you feed your mind will determine the release of your full potential. I’ve been trying to eat healthier. I’ve been working out and being more selective about what I put in my body. I’ve fed my body a lot of junk food through the years. But it’s nothing compared to the junk with which I used to feed my mind. 

If I am feeding my mind pornographic images, it does something to the way I view other people, and the way I see relationships. If I’m always thumbing through magazines looking at celebrities and those perfect bodies who live rich and famous lifestyles, it messes with my contentment factor, makes me insecure in my own skin, and skews my perspective on the importance of stuff. If I am feeding my mind with all the political nastiness on social media, it turns me into a cynical, joyless, and even hate-filled person. Whether it’s movies, books, music, conversations, or jokes, I have to be careful what I am constantly feeding my mind. My mind and your mind will be shaped by what we feed it. 

If you’ve read my story then you know that I ran as far as I could from God and his Word. But these days as I’ve been daily feeding my mind on God’s truth, I’ve been growing and God is producing some pretty cool fruit in my life. I’m learning that it is alive and life-changing. You really ought to try it. 

The reason to read the Bible is not to get extra credit from God or to gain more knowledge so you can smoke someone in a game of Bible Jeopardy. It’s so you can grow and produce good fruit with your life. So I encourage you to “Let your roots grow down into him” (Colossians 2:7).