First and foremost, transforming one’s life requires an understanding of why it needs to be transformed. To those who are content with their life I can only say, “It won’t last long”. Life has a way of forcing us to look deeper and eventually, all of us must do some inner work. Sadly, for many this is only considered on their death bed.

Here is some timeless wisdom: “Be not conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind”. I share this author’s view, that inner transformation can only begin by refusing to conform to what most everyone else is doing. I want to learn how to be more loving, more giving, more compassionate, more gentle, and more nurturing of those who are infirm. I want to avoid becoming a hypocrite, someone who says one thing and does another, someone who feigns love.

So, what does it mean to renew one’s mind? I have a rock solid belief in the importance of being still and listening to God. It is a belief forged in the fires of homelessness and the loss of my children. When I was at the lowest possible point in my life, God reached down and gave me understanding as to how to overcome anything life could throw at me.

The first step was to refuse to take the easy road provided by the world (alcohol, drugs, illicit sex, gambling, being angry and abusive towards others or any other method of self-medication to deaden the pain; anger and gambling might not seem like self-medication but they produce brain chemicals that give a recognizable high to those so addicted).

The second step was to discover how to renew my mind. Having been involved with yoga many years prior, I knew how to meditate. But I discovered something new. In the following paragraphs I’m going to share an excerpt from my book, “$ecret$”, from a chapter entitled, “Spend Glory to Glory Transformational Time With God”.

“In 1983, having been a Christian for 10 years, I was forced by circumstances beyond my control into homelessness. Although there have been many miracles leading to my eventual success, suffice it to say that at this time in my life I was at rock bottom! I was living in my car, in the mountains of the west, and when I wasn’t looking for work I would drive to my favorite place, a quiet rarely used road that led to a cliff overlooking the Goat River.

One day at the river I read a passage of scripture that seemed to leap out of the bible and impress upon me its great significance. Jesus had gone to the Garden of Gethsemane, to ask God to remove the great burden of having to suffer upon the cross. His agony was so great he sweat great drops of blood. Three times he came out of the garden to check on the three disciples, whom he had asked to watch over and pray for him. Each time, he found them sleeping. Finally he said to them, “Could you not pray with me but one hour”? In a sudden flash of insight I realized that Jesus was telling them an hour was the minimum he expected and that it was but little to ask.

By example Jesus revealed to the world this simple truth, that if we desire to pray with power, unto victory over those things that sidetrack the vast majority from their intended purpose, we must spend sufficient time alone with God. So, I put it to the test. I began to meditate/pray for one hour minimum, seeking to listen and understand what God would have me to do rather than just read off a mental list of requests. The results were nothing short of astounding. Each time, about three quarters of the way through my praying, the usual mental disturbances of thought would suddenly be quieted and I would feel this intense connection, this “peace that passes ALL understanding” (Php 4:7) and a joy like no other.

What I had tapped into was nothing less than God’s glory, infusing me and empowering me in ways I could not have dreamed. This was made clearer when I read this passage in II Corinthians: 2Co 3:18 “But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.” I realized that when I meditated, I was letting go of all the social masks we are made to wear (“with open face”) that there is this process, akin to looking in a mirror (“beholding as in a glass”) but instead of seeing myself, I see the Lord (“beholding as in a glass the Glory of the Lord”). This causes me to change (“are changed into the same image”) with the Lord’s glory being transferred to me, all by the power of the Spirit (“from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord”). There was no turning back and from that day to this I go before the Lord to seek his guidance each and every morning, for at least an hour, before I enter into my daily activities. To say that it is extremely refreshing would be an understatement, for in truth I find it as important as life itself, no less important than eating or breathing.

That was my first and most important secret, the one upon which all the others have been built. This is the secret that every person seeking spiritual growth and success in life, should know.”

Leroy Grey

This entry was posted on Tuesday, December 12th, 2006 at 7:16 am and is filed under 3Circles Church Communities, be the church, church, how-to, meditation, spirit-centered revolution, spiritual principles. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.