Gardener’s Question Time
We are so blessed to have a garden in our home. When we first moved here much of our garden was overgrown. It’s only when you start pulling weeds and cutting back bushes that have got ‘leggy’ that you realise how much work there is to do. So much of it needs redesigning and rethinking.

I began to think of my mind as a bit like that too. If I allow a thought to take root and pay no attention to where it is going, it will become like one of those plants that shades out others and takes over. I also thought of how beautiful a garden can be. I want to be able to walk through my garden with Jesus, admiring the good thoughts he has put there, seeded by my time in the word. But alas, there are still some unkempt areas that, if I were walking through this garden, I’d be ashamed of.

Then I realised it wasn’t an original thought.

Lots of people have said that the mind is like a garden. Here’s one:
 “A man's mind may be likened to a garden, which may be intelligently cultivated or allowed to run wild; but whether cultivated or neglected, it must, and will, bring forth. If no useful seeds are put into it, then an abundance of useless weed seeds will fall therein, and will continue to produce their kind.”

(James Allen)
In our last verse we were talking about our bodies and how important it is for us to offer them as a living sacrifice. This is our proper and fitting worship towards God. But the key to doing this consistently is found in the mind. Have a look at these two verses together:
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. 2 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)
This Means War!
We have looked at some of the ways we are at war with our flesh – the natural, ungodly desires that take place in our bodies. We have seen that the best way to defeat the flesh, is to offer our bodies to God. In fact, to do this is only to offer what is reasonable and logical after all he has done for us in his body.

When we put our bodies in the right place, getting into habits, rhythms and routines that are healthy, we give our flesh less of a chance to be led into sinful behaviour patterns.

But the key to doing all of this is to start with the mind. You will see that from last week’s verse about offering our bodies, Paul moves straight into the idea that we must renew our minds.

Today I’m going to give you some very practical and powerful tips on how you can make that work, and the rewards are fantastic – we get to test and approve what God’s will is!
Patterns of Behaviour
Look at the two words here, ‘conform’ and ‘transform’.

The verse suggests that the world follows a pattern.

It’s an either-or option. You will either conform to the pattern of the world, or you will be transformed.

I have listed below 7 areas in which the world might follow a pattern that we as followers of Jesus must prayerfully and intentionally examine in our own lives:

Values – principles I live by
Beliefs – what I consider to be true with little or no doubt
Lifestyle – behaviour patterns
Accepted Norms – I know what is normal because everybody else does / thinks it.
Priorities – what I give most time, energy and money to
Coping Strategies – what I turn to when times are tough
Measures of Success – How I decide if I have done well or not

Think about how people in the world, without Jesus as their saviour, without the Holy Spirit living inside them, might be different from someone who is living a Spirit-led life.

What is the ‘pattern of this world’ with respect to the list I have created?

What are some of the values in the world that are no longer acceptable to the born-again bel...

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