So, it’s been a while since I posted. Honestly, I was taken aback at a comment made on NBC’s The Office a couple of months ago. The implication was that blogging is out, tweeting and texting are in. Now, thankfully I don’t allow all my life choices to be based off a TV show, but I do want to make sure that I’m using my time wisely and most effectively. Overall though, it just got me thinking and I didn’t find it too hard to believe that blogs (at least according to mainstream media) are officially irrelevant. My conclusion/reasoning follows. (Please understand these are GENERALITIES being proposed. I realize there are exceptions.)

People are lazy. People want easy. We now live in a google-it, twitter-it, text-it, microwave-it, “do you have hi-speed?” world. One of the most common “critiques” I get concerning my blog is that it is “too long.” Yup, I’m guilty–it’s typically longer than 140 characters. (If you don’t get that, it means you don’t have twitter–which by the way, means you’re not relevant). People want things right away. They don’t want to have to wait. They don’t want to have to read a “whole blog” to get the author’s point–let alone a BOOK! That is why American Idol‘s Results show is torture–they wait until the very last four minutes of the show to reveal who’s going home. (Not to mention every other competition reality show.)

People no longer have to study and research to find answers to questions, they just put it into a search engine and in milliseconds (which the site is sure to tell them) they have millions of options. For example, I just typed “how to tie a shoe” into Google. In 0.18 seconds, I received 48,200,000 results. Another example: I venture to say that the dictionary.com iPhone app is causing quite a bit of dust to settle on those big, ancient books.

Now please do not think I am saying that the internet and smart phones have ruined the world as we know it. I don’t believe that. I LOVE social networking–and believe it has HUGE benefits. In fact, without it, you probably wouldn’t have known this blog post existed! And I am so thankful for the resources that the Internet makes available to me for study and research, at the click of a button. But I do believe that there are some things of which we need to be aware and be proactive to protect our minds.

At the beginning of 2011, the Lord convicted me of not sufficiently using my mind, that I wasn’t using it to my (or His) fullest capability. He reminded me that I have the mind of Christ (1 Cor 2:16) and asked, “How are you utilizing this precious gift, privilege, honor, responsibility!?” He led me to do a couple of things: a. memorize the book of Colossians this year b. read books that are “challenging” academically to stretch my brain muscle. I do not tell you that to boast, but rather to give practical examples.

The other day I overheard a Christian casually say, “I’m just not a reader…” Her comment struck me! SHE. IS. A. CHRISTIAN. Dr. John Piper, in God’s Passion For His Glory, writes,

“Evangelical Christians, who believe God reveals Himself primarily through a book, the Bible, should long to be the most able readers they can be.”

Christian, do you believe that the Bible is the most common way God speaks to you?

If you are a Christian, your mind is of the utmost importance to your walk with Christ. Romans 12:2 says, “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.” Such a familiar verse that many of you have likely read hundreds of times, right? Please read this: we will NOT know the will of God without the renewing of our minds. Sobering. Frightening. Freeing…we CAN know the will of God. Wow. One of my favorite things I have learned about this verse concerns the words “transformed” and “renewal.” Transformed, in the Greek, is a passive verb, meaning it is done to us. God does the transforming. It is His perfect, relentless, miraculous work in me that produces any change. Renewal, in the Greek, is active–that’s my part–the renewal of my mind.

What are you doing to stretch your mind? How are you learning? How are you studying? How are you exercising your mind? What books are you reading? Do you take notes during sermons? Are you on a bible memory plan? YOU HAVE THE MIND OF CHRIST. Ask the Lord how He would challenge you. Ask the Holy Spirit to do His transforming work. Ask Him to empower your obedience to renew your mind daily.

I pray that you haven’t read any “duty” in my words, but rather “delight” in discovering the mysteries of God.

PS. Feel free to twitter or facebook this blog post! 🙂 HA! You had to know that was coming…