I'm getting to be preaching a sermon this weekend which will touch on the intriguing directive from the Apostle Paul: "Do not be conformed to the pattern of this world, but instead, be transformed by the renewing of your mind" (Romans 12:2). The idea is that the way we change -- the way we are transformed -- is through changing our thinking, which translates to our living.

At one level, this makes a lot of sense, but there's also something confusing about it. It makes sense that our internal thought patterns shape how we interpret our experiences, and then also shape our behavior. I find it fascinating how different people can undergo the same experience, but one person finds it frustrating, while another person finds it exhilarating. By the same token, one person might find an experience stressful, while another person finds it routine. Same external experience, but very different internal experiences ... and what makes the internal experience different is how they think. It's how they interpret the experience, based on their conscious awareness and conditioning.

It reminds me of the great quote from John Milton: "The mind is its own place and in itself, can make a Heaven of Hell, and a Hell of Heaven."

I've been reading an old-school motivational book by Robert Collier called "The Secret of the Ages." Originally published in 1925, it is still in print today. It's interesting to compare the mindset of self-help authors from previous generations, like Collier, to what is talked about today. In many ways, I find people like Collier more helpful. (Although of course, keep in mind my universal caveat: just because I learn from any author or book and share ideas from it doesn't mind I endorse them or agree with everything they say.)

Among other fascinating ideas in Collier's book is his insistence on the importance of controlling your thoughts. His interest is helping people find career and financial success, but I find myself translating what he says to all realms of success in life. He says that in order for us to find lasting success, we need to be rigorous in our discipline of what we think about. In other words, we need to transform ourselves by renewing our minds. 

And he's saying that we can do this!

Collier's bottom line is that, if we want to find happiness and success, we must learn to control our thinking. Listen to what he says:

I agree with what he's saying, AND I think there is something else that is important to add. (This is what brings us to what I said earlier was "confusing" about Paul's teaching in Romans 12:2 about being transformed by renewing your mind.) The problem is that it often seems that our thoughts just pop into our heads, and that controlling this stream of consciousness seems like trying to control the wind.

I'm not sure who are the "oriental schools of psychology" that Collier is referring to in the quote above, but I know one important oriental school (Morita therapy) that would definitely want to nuance what he is saying. Based on the research and writing of Shoma Morita, one of the tenents of Morita therapy is that our thoughts pop up, often unbidden. They are the unconscious consequence of previous experiences and conditioning. The skill required, therefore, is one of questioning and ignoring these thoughts that pop up, not trying to squash them down by force of will, as a conscious choice.

We've all heard speakers use the common thought experiment "Okay, right now, DON'T think of a pink elephant. Fill your mind with something, but make sure you don't think about a pink elephant." Of course, at that point, no matter how hard we try, we keep thinking about pink elephants. Consciously directed thought-stoppage is not how we control our thinking.

The locus of control is on what we allow the thinking mind to dwell on. It's how seriously we take those thoughts that pop up. Like with computer pop up ads, it's whether we look at the pop up ad, read through it, or (God forbid) actually click on the ad -- rather than just closing it and focusing on other parts of the screen.

So it's true -- and an important insight -- that the quality of our thinking shapes the quality of our lives. It's true -- and an important insight -- that we are transformed by renewing our mind. It's true -- and an important insight -- that the skill of expelling destructive thoughts and focusing instead of good, beautiful, and excellent ones (see Philippians 4:8) is essential for having a good life.

Just keep in mind that the way we do this is not by exertion of will-power, not by conscious elimination -- "not thinking about that pink elephant." We do this by filling our minds with something else. We do this by not taking the popup thoughts so seriously, and not acting on them. We do this by taking some specific, positive action ... and in the process, there is a shift in our conscious thinking.