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“Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.” – Romans 12: 2
Romans 12:2 talks about being transformed by the renewing of your mind. That sounds inspiring, but it also raises an important question: How exactly do we renew our minds? How do we actually retrain the way we think so that our thoughts, reactions, attitudes, and decisions increasingly resemble Jesus?
Becoming like Jesus doesn’t happen simply by believing in Jesus. It happens as we intentionally practice the ways of Jesus. Think of your mind like a well-worn path. The more often you walk a particular route, the easier it becomes to follow. Our thought patterns work the same way. Years of worry, criticism, resentment, comparison, pride, or negativity can create well-established mental pathways. Retraining the mind means creating new ones.
First, practice Scripture meditation. Reading the Bible is important, but sometimes we read Scripture without allowing Scripture to read us. Choose a verse or passage and sit with it. Ask, What does this tell me about God? What does this reveal about me? What would change if I actually believed this today? Jesus knew Scripture, quoted Scripture, and lived Scripture. The goal isn’t simply to know more verses. It is to allow God’s truth to become the mental framework through which we see life.
Second, practice intentional gratitude. Gratitude interrupts our natural tendency to focus on what’s wrong. Before complaining about what you don’t have, deliberately identify what you do have. Thank God for three specific things each day. They don’t have to be profound. Sometimes the blessings are remarkably ordinary: a good cup of coffee, a conversation with a friend, a beautiful sunset, or another day to live. Gratitude trains our attention—and what we repeatedly pay attention to shapes the way we think.
Third, practice the pause. Jesus didn’t react to every person or situation impulsively. We can learn to create space between what happens and how we respond. When someone irritates you, pause before answering. When you’re angry, pause before sending the text. When you’re tempted to judge someone, pause and ask, What might Jesus see here that I don’t see? That little pause can become a powerful spiritual discipline.
Fourth, practice replacing thoughts rather than merely resisting them. Philippians 4:8 gives us a helpful filter: whatever is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and praiseworthy—think about such things.
When an anxious thought enters your mind, don’t simply say, Stop worrying. Replace it with God’s truth: God is with me. I don’t have to control everything. We don’t retrain our minds merely by eliminating unhealthy thoughts. We retrain them by repeatedly introducing healthier, Christ-centered ones.
Becoming like Jesus is not a personality makeover. It is a lifelong process of transformation. We are allowing the Holy Spirit to reshape the patterns of thought that have been forming us for years.
The goal isn’t simply to think about Jesus more often.
The goal is to learn to think more like Jesus.
Discussion Questions
- Which of these practices—Scripture meditation, gratitude, pausing before reacting, replacing unhealthy thoughts, or asking “What would Jesus do?”—would most help you retrain your mind, and why?
- Think about a situation where you typically react out of habit. How might your response change if you intentionally paused and asked, “How would Jesus see and respond to this?”