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by Stephen F. Shober (Author)
Renewal of the mind is the Great Physician's prescription for the troubled soul. The Bible, in Romans 12:1-2, teaches the need to become a transformed person through the renewal of the mind. Transformation is the metamorphoses (a change in form) of our minds, changing the expressions of the old life and nature for the new nature each believer has. Indeed, it is a whole new manner of life. This book is a study guide, designed to help each person learn how to properly participate in the transformation process to make it most effective. This book is for people who feel stuck in life, as though they were going through the motions, spinning their wheels, but accomplishing nothing. Many feel controlled by their pasts or in bondage to their own emotional baggage. The Lord wants to deliver us from our own dysfunctional and misguided minds by renewing them, and in the process our lives will be transformed. Then we will be able to think and act as the new person we are in Jesus Christ; life will have purpose and control will flow from within us. Who we really are deep inside, is defined by entities such as character, attitude, conscience, values, etc. These reside in the deeper recesses of the soul, in the central core of our being. They can be deeply scarred by the events of life, sin, self, false concepts..., and these scars are often created early in life. Thus, our scarred souls (minds) carry the baggage of our pasts, the emotional pain of our lives, and the thinking characteristic of the non-regenerated mind. Our dilemma is: we are powerless to do anything about these scars (which are like scratches on DVD) and we can't function correctly with them. Resolving this dilemma is the Lord's work, and that is what mind renewal accomplishes. This is why the Holy Spirit works in the deepest parts of our minds, to reach the inner, core issues of life. This is where miracles are performed in our lives. Upon faith in Christ, the Holy Spirit enters our lives, and searches out the deepest recesses of our minds. As the Spirit works, He changes us, starting from those deepest recesses and working outward. The gunk of our past, the emotional baggage, the pride and self righteousness, the toxic memories, the negative thoughts that control our lives..., are all transformed through His power. In their place the Spirit produces His fruit, which is exactly what we need (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control...). Some topics discussed: depression, mental baggage, toxic thoughts, harmful emotions, negativity, fear and anxiety, being overweight, deadly memories, and the stress-health connection. Specific plans are developed to show how to address any matter in life in a godly manner, with the goal of achieving a renewed mind.
