Session 2 - Beth Moore (part 1)

Well, finally, I am here again, and this time, I'm actually going to write about Beth Moore's morning session talk. It's going to be long, and sorry if it doesn't make a ton of sense, I'm writing from the notes I took.

The passage she spoke on was Romans 12:1-2 "Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God - this is your spiritual act of worship. 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 test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing and perfect will."

God's will is perfect. The Bible says we have to be transformed by the renewing of our minds. Then, and ONLY then, will you be able to discern what the will of God is. We cannot know the will of God, without the renewing of our minds.

Anything that impacts our calling, God has direction for in our lives. He has a will for our lives, and his will is the most fulfilling.

There is no one like our God! There is nothing like him. And he has a will, a plan for your life.

In order to fulfill our callings, we need the Holy Spirit. We cannot do it on our own. We cannot accomplish what the Lord has called us to accomplish on our own. We have to fight for perseverance. It will not come easily and it will not come naturally. It requires a renewed mind.

Hebrews 10:35-36 says, "So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised."

Our minds need to be renewed. Let's just take a second to look at the beauty of our minds. Some facts about the brain (courtesy of Beth Moore)

Our brains are about the size of both fists. About three pounds. (these are three pounds you would NOT want to loose.)

Decisions are made in the front part of your brain. (Funny how people often touch their forehead when thinking about making a decision)

The memory part of the brain is close to your temple. (Again, often touched when trying to remember of something)

There are 100 billion neurons in our brains that make 100 trillion connections. (We can't even comprehend how big those numbers are!)

Off of these neurons are synapses - which kind of look like trees.
Matthew 7:20 says, "Thus, by their fruit, you will recognize them."
Whatever is going on in our minds - produces fruit in the activation of our lives

There is no way to measure the capacity of our brains. (kind of crazy to think about)

Our minds are brilliant. The capabilities of our minds are amazing. Beth told us about a story she saw in the news, or read somewhere about a guy who dove into a pool and hit his head on the bottom. He got a concussion and had some brain damage. When he had recovered, he was at a friends house who owned a piano. For some reason he was drawn to it. He sat down and started masterfully playing the piano. He had never touched a piano in his life. He could play Beethoven, and Mozart beautifully. Our brains are so cool!

The same mind that has the capacity for brilliance, has a capacity for darkness beyond what any of us have ever imagined. Henry Ward Beacher said, "there are materials enough in every mans mind to make a hell there."

Job 21:6 says, "when I think about this, I am terrified; trembling seizes my body." Our thoughts can produce physical results. Our mind controls our body.

God has given us the ability to reason and know what we do and why.

The King James Version of Jeremiah 29:11 says, "For I know the thoughts I think towards you, says the Lord. Thoughts of peace and not of evil. To give you a future and a hope." It may sound repetitive - the thoughts I think towards you - but God thinks thoughts towards us! Part of what separates us from animals is our intellect. The ability to think thoughts.

If we try to zero in on what is going on in our heads, we often think that real change is not even possible. That is a lie. WE CAN CHANGE OUR MINDS!

A word that is used over and over and over in scriptures, which means to change my mind, is the word repentance. Which means to change my mind in such a way that it changes my actions. Our ability to discern and distinguish the will of God is dependent on repentance - the changing of our minds.

Our minds have to be transformed.

I am only just getting started. I didn't realize quite how many pages of notes I took. But in the interest of trying to not loose you in length, I will continue in another post. Just hold tight, the best is yet to come. Don't forget this though.