Guard Your Heart and Mind

Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life. [Proverbs 4:23]

Do less mindless scrolling, and mindless activities, and schedule more mindful learning and purposeful activities!!

• Schedule time aside for a purposeful increase of knowledge.
• Schedule time to be in the Word.
• Stop wasting time on social media.
• Stop watching movies or videos that are not feeding your mind.
• What books are you reading?
• What podcasts are you listening to?
• The best way to manage this is put set a stopwatch and only check things until that stopwatch goes off.

[Colossians 3:1-16] Living the New Life

3 Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God’s right hand.

2 Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth.

3 For you died to this life, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God.

4 And when Christ, who is your life, is revealed to the whole world, you will share in all his glory.

5 So put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you. Have nothing to do with sexual immorality, impurity, lust, and evil desires. Don’t be greedy, for a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world.

6 Because of these sins, the anger of God is coming.

 7 You used to do these things when your life was still part of this world.

8 But now is the time to get rid of anger, rage, malicious behavior, slander, and dirty language.

9 Don’t lie to each other, for you have stripped off your old sinful nature and all its wicked deeds.

10 Put on your new nature, and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like him.

11 In this new life, it doesn’t matter if you are a Jew or a Gentile, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbaric, uncivilized, slave, or free. Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us.

12 Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.

13 Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.

14 Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony.

15 And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful.

16 Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts.

[Romans 12:1-18] A Living Sacrifice to God

12 And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him.

2 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.

3 Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning:

• Don’t think you are better than you really are.
• Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us.
• Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, 5 so it is with Christ’s body.
• We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other.
• In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well.
• So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you.
• If your gift is serving others, serve them well.
• If you are a teacher, teach well.
• If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging.
• If it is giving, give generously.
• If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously.
• And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.

Don’t just pretend to love others.

• Really love them.
• Hate what is wrong.
• Hold tightly to what is good.
• Love each other with genuine affection
• Take delight in honoring each other.
• Never be lazy…
• Work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically.
• Rejoice in our confident hope.
• Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying.

When God’s people are in need, be ready to help them.

• Always be eager to practice hospitality.
• Bless those who persecute you.
• Don’t curse them; pray that God will bless them.
• Be happy with those who are happy
• weep with those who weep.
• Live in harmony with each other.
• Don’t be too proud to enjoy the company of ordinary people.
• And don’t think you know it all!

Never pay back evil with more evil.

• Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable.
• Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone.