And so dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice--the kind he will accept. When you think of what he has done for you, is this too much to ask? Don't copy the behavior and the custom of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will know what God wants you to do, and you will know how good and pleasing and perfect his will really is.
The key for a new life is right there in the next to the last sentence. "Let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think." If I could only get my hands around that, if I could only explain how that happens...the benefits...the peace it brings. There are times I am so strong because of God's presence in my life. But there are times I falter and my thinking starts stinking, and I begin to have negative attitudes and snide remarks and a critical spirit. Right then, right there at the first carnal thought, I need to stop, bow my head, submit my prideful heart, and ask God to forgive me and put His Spirit within me.
I need to be led daily by the Holy Spirit, and not the spirit of Carnal Carol. I know the more I submit, the more I stop on the spot and not allow that evil behavior or train of thought to continue, He will instantly deliver me and strengthen me. The more I think on what is pure and lovely and right, the less I will work myself into a self-righteous fervor. I love peace, and I must pursue peace through the Peace Giver!
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