A few weeks ago Kyle and I went on a camping trip to North Carolina. One of our friends asked us, “How do you beat temptation? How do you not think about girls? How do you not give into sin when it is so tempting to do?” I told him you have to quote scripture when you pray, not just ask God to help you not think about that thing.
I then began asking myself, “How can a middle school student live victoriously? How can he read his Bible on a daily basis? How can she not give into temptation? How can he not think that bad thought, say that word?” It is more than just quoting scripture!
What does the Bible say about this? Romans 12:2 says, “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to attest and prove what God’s will is. His good, pleasing and perfect will.” Your mind is like an empty room that stores ideas that come from the music you listen to, the TV you watch and the people you hang around.
The world has millions of ideas on life. Music says that it is a girl’s body we should like. Magazines and TV tell us if we look pretty people will like us. Billboards on the highway tell us to look at girls. Beer advertisements tell us that parties bring fun to life, and everyone is doing them.
These ideas are stored in this room. These ideas will stay in your mind (this room) until you decide to renew your mind. They will become your thoughts if you don’t renew your mind, and they will in turn become your actions. For example, if you think about a bad song with the lyrics, “I love your body,” the moment you see a girl you will begin to think about her body, which is lusting. If you never think of purity, things that are praiseworthy, things that are noble, then you’ll never know how to be pure. If you never think about witnessing and being as bold as a lion, you will probably not witness to your friends. If you think about a movie of a guy and a girl kissing, you will have the idea stored in you that it’s okay to kiss and when you are tempted to kiss you will be more likely to kiss.
Now you see how vitally important your thoughts are. The famous philosopher Rene Descartes said, “I think, therefore I am.” What you think about is what you will become.
How in the world can you not think about all these things? Your friends talk about them. Billboards on the highway show them. The internet and TV is filled with it. Music says it. Everything around you gives you these ideas. Is it possible to change what you think about? –Yes
“Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”
YOU MUST LEARN TO THINK THE BIBLE. Step 1: You have to clean out the junk. The first step to cleaning out your closet is getting the junk out. You must get rid of the bad music, TV, and friends that impart worldly thinking to you. Step 2: Fill it back up with the good stuff. Read the Bible to think the Bible.
If you can learn to think scripture, you will become scripture. Imagine what we could become if we learned to think the Bible. When a temptation comes we think scripture and our actions turn into scripture. Try this for a week and see the miracle God does.
Ryan Austin
Element Youth Leader
