Building habits to develop a strong mindset.
“Therefore if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here” 2 Corinthians 5:17
When we become Christians, we make a decision to leave our old lives, our old ways of thinking behind us, to follow Christ and his purpose and plan for our lives.
When we become Christians, Christ transforms our lives, through our ways of thinking.
We experience God’s love for us and his power and Holy Spirit and it change us completely. As Christ changes us, he gives us instructions in God's word on how to live a purposeful, Godly life. Our part to play in this is building a life of Godly habits.
Building habits is such an important and powerful way to change your life.
We have many habits that we do every day and don’t even realize it. We pick up habits from our families, our friends, or the people around us. Not many of us are aware of our habits, and therefore can get stuck in a certain way of living our lives and our thinking patterns. When we realize that everything we do throughout our day is built on good or negative habits, it gives us a good opportunity to examine our habits a bit more closely, so we can start new habits and make changes.
“Instead, renew the thinking of your mind by the Spirit and clothe yourself with the new person created according to God’s image in justice and true holiness” Ephesians 4:22-24
God wants us to build habits in our lives that help us to grow in our faith, that help us take care of our bodies, our minds and our hearts.
Building a strong mindset all starts with building a framework of positive, healthy, Godly thinking patterns.
The way we think, and our thinking patterns are so important for us to be aware of, and make some changes if needed.
What do you spend most of your time thinking about?
Have you noticed any thought patterns that you would like to change?
Building a strong mindset has helped me significantly in the last couple of years. I used to think negatively about the way that I looked and my talents, and I didn’t realize that it was a habit of thinking until I read a book about habits, and I decided to change the way I thought about myself.
As I started to read verses about what God says about me, I realized that God created me, loved me, accepted me, and deliberately and intentionally made me with my personality, features, talents and gifts.
As I started to meditate on my Identity in Christ, it really changed the way I thought about myself.
I found myself thinking about all the things I liked about myself, and all the wonderful gifts, talents and skills that I have. I can honestly say that starting the habit of meditating on God's word and what it says about me, changed my thinking about how I think about myself.
Its much easier to start a new habit, than it is to try to break an old one. If you spend time on focusing on the building new habit, it’s a positive change and when we focus on making changes that are positive, we start to feel good and keep up the habit.
If you are aware of some of the things that you would like to change, the best way to start is by creating one habit at a time that is easy to do and focus on doing that for 3 weeks until it becomes apart of your life, then start a new one.
Its really important to start 1 new habit at a time and build it as a “mindset” change, so that it just becomes apart of your life. I know that I tried to make changes before in my life and tried to change too many things at once and failed to achieve them, so I gave up. When I started by doing 1 habit at a time, and spent time focusing on building that habit as a new way to live my life, it changed the way I thought about myself.
When we build Godly habits into our lives, it reinforces our Identity in Christ.
When I build a habit of eating healthy foods, I am not just someone who eats healthy, I am a healthy person. When you build habits that are connected to your Identity, it strengthens your mindset of who you are, rather than what you do.
Building a strong mindset, based on your Identity in Christ is essential for you to succeed, flourish and thrive in your life.
What are some ways you can build Godly habits in your life?
First of all, sit down with a piece of paper and write down one thing you would like to see improved in your life. It could be your health, your finances, your relationships, your thinking patterns, your exercise, and your faith.
Find a verse in the Bible that applies to that area of your life and put it on your wall, so you see it everyday.
Work out one new habit that you can create to help improve that area of your life, and start to implement it.
For me, I wanted to grow in my faith, so I started 1 new habit at a time to incorporate God’s word into my life. I wrote down verses on pieces of paper and put them on my bathroom mirror, so when I get ready in the morning, I read over them.
When I am in the car, I start to go over some of my favourite verses, and right before I go to bed, I go over those verses again. Starting this habit has helped me think about God’s word and renew my mind with his promises and truth for me. I focused on the habit for a few weeks and then it just became apart of my day, and I do it now, without even thinking.
As you build positive, Godly habits in your life, you will start to notice a difference in your thinking patterns and the way that you live.
Building “Godly thinking habits” will make a huge impact on your life. Its will transform any area of your life that you want to change.
“Let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think” Romans 12:2b
What habit do you need to start today to help build a strong mind?