Supernatural Transformation: Change Your Heart Into God’s Heart (37 page)

No transformation is permanent without a change of mentality.

• When our mind is renewed, we have access to God’s imagination. The false arguments and mental processes of the fallen human mind-set produce a limited vision. The reason we often ask, “How can this be?” in relation to God’s promises is that human reason alone can’t understand the things of God. The fallen mind has a vast imagination, yet it is still limited, and it is unable to comprehend the marvelous plans, ideas, and thoughts of God. Yet, when our mind is renewed in Christ, we are able to think according to the outlook of heaven, and we realize that doubting God’s Word is merely a waste of time.
  

You know that your mind has been renewed when the “impossible” becomes logical to you.

How to Continuously Renew Your Mind

The transformation of your mind comes as a result of humbling yourself before God and acknowledging that you have lived according to a mentality that is contrary to His mind-set—one that is limited to the natural world and unable to believe in His power, much less manifest that power to heal sickness, remove heartache, and set free those who are in bondage. The transformation occurs when you truly hunger to see God’s presence manifest and His supernatural power and grace operate for His glory—in your life, in the life of your family members, and in the life of your church, city, and nation. For the transformation of your mind to occur, you must regularly do the following:

1. Immerse Your Mind in the Revelation of God’s Word

Revelation leads to a new experience with God. Our mind begins to be renewed when the Holy Spirit reveals to us a truth from God’s Word, and the renewal is complete when we obediently put into practice the revelation we receive. When Noah had a revelation of God’s purpose, his mind-set changed, and, in obedience, he built an ark in the middle of a desert—even though it had never rained before. When Peter had a revelation of Jesus as the Messiah, his mind-set changed, and his life was established on a course that led him to be a principal leader through whom Christ established His beloved church.

Without the revelation of the Word, we cannot
experience transformation.

2. Meditate on the Word

The Lord commanded Joshua,
“This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall
meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it
. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success”
(Joshua 1:8). In some religions, to meditate means to “empty” the mind of all thoughts, but that is not what biblical meditation means. In fact, emptying our mind can be a dangerous practice, because it lowers our spiritual guard and opens the door for demons to influence us. We know that the enemy doesn’t wait for an invitation to enter—he searches for an opportunity to take over the territory of our mind and heart. (See, for example, Matthew 12:43–45.)

To meditate in a biblical sense means to spend time reading, studying, and thinking about the truths of God’s words—including the prophetic words written in the Bible and those given to us directly by the Holy Spirit as revealed knowledge and wisdom—and considering how to apply them to our life, for the purpose of filling our mind and heart with God’s revelation. Every person in the world practices “meditation” in the general sense of focusing his thoughts on particular things; the question is, on what is he reflecting? For instance, when we worry about something, we are meditating in a negative sense, filling our mind with doubt, anxiety, pessimism, and other destructive attitudes. The Scriptures give us clear guidelines for what we should be thinking about. Paul wrote,
“W
hatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things”
(Philippians 4:8).

If we don’t purposefully take time to meditate on God’s Word, our mind can be dominated by temporal, carnal thinking. For example, if we allow fearful thoughts to remain in our mind for a long period of time, a fearful mentality can become established in us. Yet, if we meditate on biblical truths that assure us of God’s faithfulness, trustworthiness, and promise of help in time of need, we will have His peace.
“You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You”
(Isaiah 26:3).

To meditate in a biblical sense means to spend time reading, studying, and thinking about the truths of God’s words and considering how to apply them to our life.

3. Seek Supernatural Experiences with God

As we increasingly align our mind with the mind of Christ, we will have encounters or experiences with God that cause us gradually to disassociate ourselves from the thinking of the natural realm in order to move into the supernatural realm and to think in supernatural terms. This doesn’t mean that we will become disconnected from reality, turn “mystic” or “odd,” or begin to deny reality or the existence of the natural world. We will continue to use our natural mind, our common sense, and our five physical senses to function under natural conditions. However, our spiritual senses will be awakened to see, hear, and perceive God; and we will learn to live in such a way that these senses are continually on full alert and totally functioning, enabling us to know God better, to confirm His will, and to discern when and how He wants to move supernaturally in our world. We will walk in the assurance that God is always carrying out His purposes, just as He reveals them.

That is how we can go beyond human reason and logic, thinking and living above natural limitations. In the supernatural realm, there is no room for doubt, because everything is possible with God! We are always ready to be a vessel through whom God can manifest the reality of His kingdom and bring His supernatural power to this world—here and now—to meet people’s present needs.

In the New Testament, Saul’s encounter with the glory of Jesus (see Acts 9:3–4) transformed his outlook on God and renewed his life, so that even his name was changed—to Paul. His mind-set, his “structure” of living, and the message he proclaimed were all transformed. Paul had been an “old wineskins” religious man and a persecutor of the church, full of hate, and blind to how God was working through Jesus and the church. But when his mind was transformed by his supernatural experience with Christ and his subsequent study of the Scriptures with the illumination of the Holy Spirit, he was able to see the reality of God’s kingdom and to work to bring that reality on earth as it is in heaven.

Supernatural experiences are an aspect of our inheritance as children of God and citizens of His kingdom; often, such experiences are the only way many people can understand certain spiritual truths and thereby change their outlook. For example, we don’t really know what it is like to be born again until we have a genuine salvation experience, with a knowledge of the forgiveness of our sins and the indwelling presence of God’s Holy Spirit. Many leaders in the church today are trying to prevent people from having experiences with the power of God, because they are afraid that such encounters are either deceptions of the enemy or manufactured events. We must, of course, exercise spiritual discernment regarding supernatural experiences. However, we must also realize that we are being deceived if we
do
not
have
genuine encounters with God and His supernatural power, because then we are living below the reality God intends for us.

The gospel messages that produce the most powerful changes in people’s lives are those presented by individuals who have experienced what they preach. Receiving a revelation of any kind from God is a supernatural experience. If we try to preach any aspect of the gospel without having received revelation about it through the Holy Spirit and/or without having experienced it, our message will lack authority and substance.

Our encounters with God—or lack of them—govern how our mind thinks. If we experience the reality of His kingdom, and then renew our mind accordingly, we will never again be the same or think in the same way. For example, after we have experienced the baptism of the Holy Spirit and spoken in other tongues, our spiritual mind-set changes. Likewise, our perspective alters after we receive a healing, a miracle, a prophetic word, or any other supernatural manifestation.

Knowledge is not truly yours until you have an experience with what you know.

4. Pray to God and Commune with Him

“Pray without ceasing”
(1 Thessalonians 5:17). When we pray, we can experience communion with God as we spend time worshipping Him, listening to His voice, and receiving His direction through the Holy Spirit. We are always changed in some way when we enter into a relationship with another person. It is the same when we spend time in God’s presence—we become more like Him, and we are better able to understand His heart, His mind, and His ways. As we develop an ever deeper relationship with Him, we can increasingly pray according to His will—for the advancement of His kingdom on earth as it is in heaven.

5. Align Your Mind with the Mind of Christ

As an act of our will, we need to pray to the Lord, “Let Christ’s mind be fully formed in me. I purposefully set my mind on what is ‘above’—especially on You, Lord, our unlimited God! I will think about what is true, noble, just, pure, lovely, of good report, virtuous, and praiseworthy. I will bring all my thoughts into alignment with the mind of Christ, so that they are ‘captive’ to Him. In Jesus’ name, amen!” (See Colossians 3:1–2.)

Prayer for Transformation of the Mind

Is your mind being transformed so that the supernatural power of God can move in your life? The purpose of this transformation is to establish Christ’s church, which the enemy—through “religion” and false philosophies—seeks to undermine and destroy. When your mind is renewed, you can flow in accordance with the “river” of the Spirit—spontaneously and with freedom. Rather than quench the Holy Spirit (see 1 Thessalonians 5:19), you will give Him His rightful place in your life, acknowledging the One who sent Him—God the Father—and the One in whose name He was sent (see John 14:26).

Dear friend, I sincerely believe that this is the time for you to begin to renew your mind—or to advance to a greater level of transformation. It is time for you to let go of a mentality that limits you in fulfilling God’s purposes, one that has kept you trapped in a repetitive cycle of thinking, preventing you from experiencing abundant life and seeing God’s power manifest here and now. I invite you to pray the following simple but powerful prayer. I know of innumerable testimonies of people who have prayed this prayer and have experienced a total transformation of their mind—and their life.

Heavenly Father, thank You for the revelation You have given me through Your Word about how my mind can be renewed. Today, I want a radical change in my life. I repent of living according to the mentality of this world and of gratifying the sinful nature. I renounce the negative influences of the world, including “religion” and the limitations of human knowledge and reason. I want Your mind, Lord. I want Your way of thinking. I want Your supernatural mind-set. I surrender my mind and my thoughts to Your supernatural power, so that they can be exchanged for Your mind and thoughts. Please renew my mind, so that I can become a useful instrument in Your hands for Your kingdom and can take this revelation to other people who are trapped in the same condition I have been in. “Here I am, Lord; send me!” In the name of Jesus, I thank You for hearing me and for activating Your supernatural power over my life—here and now. In Jesus’ name, amen.

If you are suffering from a physical or mental disorder, like the young men we read about in the testimonies earlier in this chapter, I pray that God’s supernatural power would fill you right now and make you completely whole, in the name of Jesus! Receive your healing by faith and begin to thank God for working a miracle in your life. All things are possible with God!

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A
t the beginning of my ministry, God gave me this prophetic word through Apostle Ronald Short: “I will give you a heart with the fire of Jeremiah and the speed of Elijah, and a heart after My own heart, just like David’s.”
This word impacted me greatly, because, for a long time, I had asked myself,
Is it possible to have a heart after God’s own heart?
Are we born with such a heart, or is transformation required to obtain it?
That was when I first understood that such a heart is gained through a supernatural transformation by the finished work of the cross. I knew that although I didn’t yet have the heart described in the prophetic word, and that developing it would not take place overnight, I would go through a process that would enable me to receive it.

My desire has always been to have a heart after God’s heart. And, by the grace of God, I have seen the above three characteristics increasingly develop and manifest in my life. The “fire” of God is always in my heart, burning endlessly for Him, for His kingdom, and for people’s souls. (See Jeremiah 20:9.) Furthermore, every endeavor I am involved with accelerates in terms of growth and the fruit it yields. Third, I have a heart that passionately seeks God’s presence with holy fear and a desire to please Him; and, by God’s anointing, I also have a disposition for spiritual warfare and conquest over the enemy, just as God gave David.