Life, The Renewing Agent of the Mind

“Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of your mind …” (Romans 12:2).

This oft quoted passage from Paul represents a common theme of Jesus. His references to things like new wineskins, new cloth, and the need to be reborn all carry the theme of renewal. As our first topic of this Advent season, we focus on the opportunity to release the old elements associated with the paradigm of separation from God and open ourselves to the renewing truth of oneness.

It is probably fair to say that most of us evolved to the idea of the kingdom of God as an internal rather than an external phenomenon. If so, we may still find ourselves stealing glances to the heavens as we pray our way through one of our life’s challenges. As this renewal of the mind, this shift in spiritual values occurs, so does our enthusiasm for our new, inner-directed approach to life. We are gradually learning how to avail ourselves to this inner fountain of guidance and comfort.

When Jesus suggested the need to become as children, he was pointing to the child-like trust that positions the mind in a receptive and inquisitive mode. The life-energy bubbling up in us is like the new fermenting wine that requires a mind free of the preconceived limitations of the old wineskins. Likewise, we do not want to try to simply patch our old-garment thinking with a few positive affirmations. We become willing to let our mind become an entirely new garment.

The fact that you and I have already responded to a new way of thinking of spiritual matters indicates that we are engaged in the transformation Paul refers to. This is not an overnight process. There will be times when we find ourselves clinging to the old even as we long for the new. As we affirm the renewing fountain of life welling up within our being, our enthusiasm for this new direction grows. The cosmic wave, as I now like to think of it, rises from within, transforming the way we experience the world around us.

This is the beauty of the renewal of the mind. We are not required to change the world, only to experience it in a new way.