A Change of Mind

2 Timothy 1-1.12

"... your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice ..." (v. 5)

There are two types of entry into the Christian life -- sudden and gradual.

The apostle Paul had one of the most sudden and dramatic conversions in Christian history, yet Paul's disciple Timothy does not seem to have had a similar experience. We cannot tell for sure, but Timothy's coming to faith, a process apparently greatly influenced by his grandmother and mother, seems to have been much more prolonged.

Without a clear understanding of repentance, and all that it entails, there can be no successful continuance in the Christian life. So what is repentance and why is it vitally important? The Greek word for repentance, metanoia, means "a change of mind." But a change of mind about what? About where life is found.

Prior to coming to Christ our minds are filled with the idea that life depends on such things as self-sufficiency, self-management, and ego-building. The Bible confronts this self-centered approach to living and says that for our lives to work the way God designed them, the ego must be marginal and not central.

Christ must be central, and the ego revolves around Him just as the planets revolve around the sun. This is quite a radical thought for any mind to grasp, but be sure of this --- if there is no acceptance of it, the soul will not go on to experience a deep and close relationship with God.

No change of mind about where life is to be found -- no spiritual progress.

It is as simple as that.

Prayer:
Dear Father in Heaven help me examine my heart and decide just who is central in my life; You or me. Show me even more clearly how I can be more Christ-centered and less ego-centered. Thank You Lord.

In the name of Jesus. Amen