Renew. Retrain. Lose Weight.

“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

Romans 12:2

Start with “Renewing” Your Mind

Sometimes I feel like I’m losing my mind, as if I’m at the mercy of my feelings and emotions. Have you ever planned a perfect day of healthy eating and made up your mind to eat only what you’ve planned, only to find yourself in the McDonald’s drive-through? It’s crazy how controlling our minds, feelings and emotions can be.

I think Paul hits the nail on the head when he says:

 “I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.” Romans 7:15

I know the powerlessness and hopelessness of feeling like I will never be able to get a handle on the areas of my life that are out of control.

Thankfully, I’m feeling a lot more hopeful. My hope is not in my ability to overcome my strongholds in my own strength, but because I’m finally starting to understand and apply the real meaning behind the scripture in Romans 12:2. It tells us to “be transformed by the renewal of your mind.”

What’s fascinating to learn right now is that science (neurosciences) can confirm that it is possible to renew your mind. It’s not just a magical, or mystic theory that leaves us feeling frustrated.

I’m learning that the scripture, “be transformed by the renewing of our mind” is not only spiritual, it’s also scientific! We can actually transform the way we think. Beyond that, we can retrain our brains to stop toxic thoughts and learn how to create healthy thoughts.

We Are Tripartite Beings

To fully understand this scripture, we have to first understand that we are tripartite beings. This is a fancy word that means, “consisting of three parts—body, soul, and spirit.” This means that whatever happens to one part of our being has repercussions in other areas as well. 

Most importantly, is to understand that everything that happens in our lives start with a thought. These thoughts are what impact our physical bodies and our spiritual lives. 

Here’s how it works:

Our Body

This is your physical being. If our bodies are not well, then it will negatively impact our soul and our spirit, but thankfully the opposite is also true.

Our Spirit

At our core is our spirit. It is the part of us that connects with God. Paul says, “When we cry, ‘Abba! Father’, it is the Spirit himself bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God.” 

Our Soul

Our soul is made up of our conscious and our subconscious mind–our emotions and our will. It gives us our personality. This is where the battle rages. It’s where we experience the anxiety, doubts and fears, which in turn manifest in our bodies as excess weight and illness, but it’s also where we experience freedom.

Research in neurosciences tells us that 95% of our brain activity (thoughts, decisions, emotions) are unconscious!

This means that most of what is happening in our minds is happening without our conscious knowledge. Now if our thoughts were positive and happy then this would be a great thing, but unfortunately the opposite is true.

So,

• Should you want to change your habits, like stopping yourself from overeating, or if you want to eat healthier, or start exercising
• If you desire to learn how to change your toxic thoughts–maybe you want to be more positive, or you want to be a kinder, or a more generous person
• If you want to increase your faith

THEN be encouraged!

How to “Retrain” Your Brain

You can retrain your brain for success. I’ve learned a 3-step process to retrain your brain. This post would be too long to go into all of the details, but here is a quick summary:

1. Capture your thoughts
2.  Replace the toxic thoughts, fears and concerns with the Word of God
3.  Symbolically and actively DO something physical 

Completing these three steps for 21-days is the solution to retraining your brain and overcoming your toxic thoughts.

Like scripture says, we don’t have to conform to this world. Transformation can take place by the renewing of our minds once we learn just how to do it. Then we can retrain our brains for weight-loss and every other area that we struggle with. We CAN change our minds and the way we think.