A RENEWED MIND

Over the past two days, we've talked about intrusive thoughts and how to take mastery over every thought. Today, let's look at the renewed mind.

In Philippians 2:5, Paul exhorts us:

"Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus."

To let means to permit, to allow, to yield. It is a deliberate choice to submit our way of thinking to the pattern of Christ.

Having the mind of Christ means allowing your thoughts, attitudes, and responses to be shaped by His truth. 

The renewed mind is not the creation of a new mind, but the transformation of the one you already have. It is the process of bringing your thinking into agreement with God's perspective.

The mind of Christ has the capacity to think, believe, and respond in a way that aligns with the Father's will because it is led by the Spirit rather than by the flesh.

Paul expands in  Ephesians 4:22

put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.

 Paul doesn't simply say, "renew your mind' he says 

 "be renewed in the spirit of your mind." 

This speaks of the governing influence behind your thinking , the inward disposition that shapes how you perceive, reason, and respond.

A mind submitted to darkness will produce thoughts consistent with darkness. A mind yielded to the Holy Spirit will increasingly reflect the life and character of Christ.

God's desire is that we be sanctified by the truth.

 Sanctify them by the truth; Your word is truth (John 17:17). 

As we continually expose ourselves to God's Word, believe it, and obey it, our minds are renewed. We stop conforming to the patterns of this world and begin to think from His perspective.

A renewed mind has learned to recognize truth, reject lies, and consistently stay on God's perspective. It is a mind that is continually being shaped by the Word and led by the Spirit over emotions . 

Romans 12:2 

And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God."

Consistency conformity to the world is proof of unrenewed mind .

INTRUSIVE THOUGHTS PT 2

If you're new here, welcome! Please adjust quickly to the fact that we apparently have devotional sequels. 🤣 Completely unplanned.

Yesterday, we said that intrusive thoughts are unwelcome, uninvited thoughts that desire to settle into the seat of your mind. The remedy is not to entertain them, but to bring them into obedience to Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5).

Today, let's go a little deeper into the renewing of the mind through meditation.

Biblical meditation is not the emptying of the mind, as seen in some worldly practices.

 Rather, it is the filling of the mind with God's truth. It is the intentional replacement of lies with truth, fear with faith, and old patterns of thinking with the mind of Christ.

One of the fascinating things about the brain is that it forms neural pathways. Every repeated thought strengthens a particular pathway. The more often you think a thought, the easier it becomes for your brain to travel that route. It's like walking through a grassy field. The first walk leaves barely a trace, but repeated walks eventually create a well worn path.

This is why what you meditate on matters. The thoughts you repeatedly dwell on become the paths your mind naturally follows.

When Scripture calls us to renew our minds (Romans 12:2) it isn't merely asking us to think positive thoughts. It is inviting us to consistently dwell on God's truth until our thinking is reshaped by it. As you repeatedly meditate on God's Word, your brain strengthens new pathways that make His truth easier to recall and live from even when an intrusive thought comes knocking.

On the other hand, if we continually rehearse fear, shame, lust, anxiety, or lies, those thought patterns also become familiar routes. The brain naturally follows the paths that have been travelled most often.

So when an intrusive thought comes, don't panic simply because it showed up. Instead, ask yourself, "Does this agree with the Word of God?" If the answer is no, then it does not deserve a seat of meditation in your mind.

Feed the truth, not the lie.

The more you meditate on God's Word, the more familiar His truth becomes not only to your spirit, but also to your patterns of thinking. Over time, what once required intentional effort begins to become your natural response.

"His delight is in the law of the Lord, and on His law he meditates day and night." — Psalm 1:2

The mind follows what it meditates on. So choose wisely what you give a permanent seat in your thoughts. 

DailyWell-Peace ✨

INTRUSIVE THOUGHTS

Last night, I found myself mulling over intrusive thoughts.

As the name suggests, intrusive thoughts are unwelcome thoughts that suddenly enter our minds needing our meditation on them. They don't define us, but if we choose to dwell on them, we give them the opportunity to make a home in our minds.

One of the biggest contributors to intrusive thoughts is anxiety and of anxiety this is what your Father says ;

Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you (1 Peter 5:7)

And;

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus ( Philippians 4:6)

The mind which is the centre of our thoughts is meant to be guarded, shielded, and sheltered by the peace of God. And this isn't ordinary peace, It is the peace that surpasses all understanding.

So when an intrusive thought creeps in, God's invitation isn't to panic, it is to take that thought captive and bring it into obedience to Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5)

Taking a thought captive looks like filtering it through the lens of God's Word.

Is it True,Is it noble,is it pure,is it lovely,is it of a good report? 

Does it agree with God's character?

Does it align with what He says about me?

If the answer is no, then it doesn't deserve a contemplation seat in my mind lest it sows a corrupt seed .

In Isaiah 26:3 God gives us this beautiful promises ;

I keep in perfect peace him whose mind is stayed on Me, because he trusts in Me.

Perfect peace is possible. Not because everything around you is okay but because your mind is stayed on the One who is faithful 

Set your mind things above where Christ is because you've been raised with Him.

DailyWell-Peace ✨

THE CHIEF CORNERSTONE

Yesterday, we talked about the ruby .

What a priceless stone that is.

In Proverbs 31:10, God says that the worth of a virtuous woman is far above rubies. 

A ruby doesn't become precious overnight. It is hidden deep within the earth, excavated with great effort, then carefully cut, refined, and polished until its brilliance is revealed. By the time it reaches the vault, its worth is almost impossible to quantify.

Today, let's look at another stone because as you probably know by now,I love unplanned sequels.

The Chief Cornerstone 😄

When Scripture calls Jesus the Chief Cornerstone, it isn't simply highlighting that He is the foundation on which we stand. It is also revealing that He is the One in whom we remain rooted, aligned, and built up.

Paul writes

"Rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught..." (Colossians 2:7).

In ancient construction, the cornerstone was the very first stone laid. It determined the alignment, strength, and stability of the entire structure. Every other stone had to conform to it. If the cornerstone was true, the building stood.

That makes Ephesians 2:20 even more beautiful:

"..having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone."

Our lives don't find stability because we have everything figured out. They find stability because the One we are built on is unchanging.

Paul says,

"For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ." — 1 Corinthians 3:11

No other foundation,only Christ.

Isaiah calls Him a precious cornerstone and a sure foundation, then makes this remarkable statement:

"Whoever believes will not act hastily."  Isaiah 28:16

What a thought.

When your foundation is sure, you dont act hastily  because that is a lack of assurance in what you are build on. You do not panic because you have a more sure word of prophecy.

A person standing on solid ground doesn't scramble for stability,they already have it.

Our lives are only as steady as the foundation beneath them. And if that foundation is Christ, then our confidence isn't in our grip on Him—it is in His unshakable hold on us.

DailyWell-Peace ✨

DISTINCT

I love watching videos of minerals being excavated

It's deeply fascinating watching the journey from the discovery of a mineral buried beneath the earth to the meticulous processing that eventually places it in a vault, ready for the world to admire and purchase.

It's been rubies this week 💎

Rubies are not your average gemstones. They are rare. They don't occur casually or abundantly. They exist with distinction in their bold, audacious red.

One thing I find remarkable about the ruby is how distinct it is. There is another gemstone that is almost identical to it in every way,same mineral family, same hardness, almost similar chemical composition. The only real difference is the colour and that one distinction changes its name from  sapphire to ruby.

And that ladies and gentlemen is where we look at his rare and distinct virtue that is Wisdom.

The book of Proverbs repeatedly tells us that wisdom is more precious than rubies. Wisdom isn't casually hanging around everywhere with everyone. It distinguishes itself.

Scripture reveals that Christ is the Wisdom of God (1 Corinthians 1:24). He is the perfect expression of divine wisdom. Any wisdom of men that tries to imitate Him without truly being conformed to Him may resemble the original but it is not the same.

To be in Christ is not merely to imitate Him. It is to be conformed to His very image , to think like Him, love like Him, and live like Him.

Just as the ruby is known by its distinct nature, so should those who belong to Christ be known by the distinct wisdom that comes from Him because the Wisdom that is from God ispure, peaceable and gentle .

Not wisdom borrowed from the world but wisdom that bears the unmistakable likeness of Christ Himself. 

DailyWell- Peace ✨

ALL THINGS

A couple of weeks back, I was sharing with you how sometimes a word will keep appearing in Scripture even when I'm not intentionally looking for it.

Yesterday, it was this phrase: ALL THINGS.

It first caught my attention in John 3:35:

"The Father loves the Son and has given all things into His hands."

This speaks of the Father's complete trust in the Son. Nothing has been withheld, the Father has entrusted everything into His hands.

But as I kept reading through John, I realized this wasn't the first time I'd come across it.

John had already introduced the phrase in the very opening chapter:

"Through Him all things were made, and without Him nothing was made that has been made." (John 1:3)

See,

The One into whose hands the Father has placed all things is the very One through whom all things came into existence. He isn't merely entrusted with creation. He is its Creator.

As I read through , I see John quietly painting one consistent picture of Jesus, everything begins with Him,everything belongs to Him and everything is under His authority 👑

Jesus goes on to say:

"All that the Father has is Mine." (John 16:15)

The Father has withheld nothing from the Son and the story doesn't stop with Christ possessing all things. It extends to those who are in Him.

Paul writes:

"All things are yours... and you are Christ's, and Christ is God's." (1 Cor 3:21–23)

At first glance, that almost sounds too good to be true. How can all things be ours?

Well,because they were first given to Christ and now we are in Him.

✨The Father gives all things to the Son.

✨ The Son shares His inheritance with His people. Not because we earned it, not because we deserved it,but because we belong to Him.

 Profound of Paul to remind us in Romans 8:32 that ;

"He who did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also, with Him, graciously give us ALL THINGS

The inheritance is already signed over. We're not working toward it. We're learning to receive .

All things is not hyperbole, it's the Father's posture toward His children—the same posture He holds toward His Son. God has blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ .

Teach your soul to trust in His everlasting Word , that He has given us ALL THINGS pertaining to life and even to Godliness,life challenges notwithstanding.

DailyWell — Peace ✨

LIFE ETERNAL

This morning ,I have  remembered a clip I watched a couple of years back — The Danger of a Single Story by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie — and one of the strongest realities from it was how easily we form conclusions when we ignore the other person’s side.

In fact, the book of wisdom says:

“The first to speak in court sounds right — until the cross-examination begins.”

Cross-examining a matter brings balance and truth. It tests credibility and exposes inconsistencies.

Looking at the story of the two women in 1 Kings 3:16, we see Solomon use wisdom to discern whose baby was alive. Both women presented their case, but one lacked credibility.

Thinking about both sides of the story — God has His story, and so do we.

God’s story:

“Let us make man in our image and likeness, and let them have dominion over the earth.”

Our story:

“We lost our dominion and kept reaching for it inconsistently through religion and effort.”

Between our story and God's story ,sin happened.

Like the dead baby in Solomons story,sin brought death where God intended life. Humanity was subjected to death, sorrow, and condemnation.

But God’s story remained intact. Unshaken.

He came full of mercy and grace — as a wise King to judge sin and as a Saviour to save man from death — not to resuscitate our dead baby, but to make us truly alive.

“Even though we were dead because of our sins, He gave us life when He raised Christ from the dead.”

He raised us up and seated us with Him.

We are now alive unto God. That has become our story.

Oh, and I hope you remember — the women were harlots. 😄

Yet the king did not question them about their harlotry.

Before this moment, he had already stood before the ark of the covenant, offered burnt offerings and peace offerings, and prepared a feast.

In your harlotry (sin), there is still a feast prepared by the King — and He wants you to come and have your story changed.

He wants you to be at peace with God.

There is no condemnation for anyone who comes to Him — only a transition from death to life.

“This is eternal life: that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.”

Christ is life.