New: 5 Ways to Renew Your Mind
How to Renew Your Mind: 5 Biblical Steps to New Beginnings
If you have ever laid awake replaying the same worries, or noticed yourself falling into the same old habit again even though you swore this time would be different, you already know how hard it is to change your own thinking from the inside. Montel Jordan, a guest speaker at Impact Church, taught from Romans 12:2 that a transformed life always begins with a transformed mind. He did not offer a vague suggestion to think positive; he gave five specific, repeatable steps that anyone can start using today.
Whether you have followed Jesus for decades or you are only now becoming curious about faith, this post walks through those steps, along with the scripture behind each one, so you can begin renewing your mind and step into the new beginnings God has for you.
What Does It Mean to Become a New Creation in Christ?
The first step Montel Jordan described is a reset, and the Bible gives that reset a name: becoming a new creation. Second Corinthians 5:17 says that anyone in Christ is a new creation, that the old has passed away and the new has come. A new creation is not a self improvement project; it is a genuine change of identity that starts the moment you let your life bend toward God's truth instead of the other way around.
Montel Jordan admitted that resetting often looks small and unglamorous. He talked about shutting down a phone, a social media feed, or an appetite that has quietly been shaping your thoughts more than you realized. A reset like that is not about willpower; it is about clearing enough space to hear from God again, which is what makes becoming a new creation possible in the first place.
Here is one honest, doable step: pick one thing you scroll, watch, or consume without thinking, and turn it off completely for one week. Notice what starts to change in your mind once that space opens up.
How Do You Resist the Devil and Break Free From Negative Thinking?
The second step is to resist, and James 4:7 puts it plainly: submit to God, resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Montel Jordan explained that to resist the devil is to refuse to comply with negativity and doubt, even when everyone around you treats it as normal. Resisting the devil is not a dramatic, one time event; it is a daily refusal to agree with thoughts that do not line up with who God says you are.
He connected this directly to Romans 12:2, noting that not being conformed to the world is essentially the same command as resisting the devil in another form. Whatever you feed your mind grows, he said, so feeding yourself doubt breeds insecurity and feeding yourself comparison breeds isolation. Learning to resist the devil often starts with noticing exactly what you have been feeding your thoughts all day.
Here is one honest, doable step: the next time a negative or fearful thought shows up uninvited, say it out loud and then say one true thing from scripture in response.
Why Does Renewing Your Mind Require Sabbath Rest?
The fourth step Montel Jordan taught, right after reset, resist, and replace, is rest, and he was blunt about why it matters. If you do not take a Sabbath, he said, the Sabbath will eventually take you, often in a form you did not choose. Sabbath rest is not a suggestion for people with extra time; it is a command for people who are tired, which is most of us.
He described flying across the country for back to back concerts and events, arriving with almost no sleep, and preaching anyway. Psalm 23 says the Lord makes his people lie down in green pastures, not that he merely suggests it, because some of us will not choose rest on our own. Sabbath rest gives your renewed mind somewhere to actually settle instead of just collecting more information about God without ever resting in him.
Montel Jordan also shared his own two and a half year cancer journey as the backdrop for everything he taught that day, saying that some people could not walk that road with him because they were not equipped for it. That kind of honesty is what made the final step, repeat, feel less like a program and more like a relationship. Devotion in the morning, connection through the day, and reflection in the evening, repeated until it becomes who you are.
Here is one honest, doable step: choose one evening this week to put your phone away an hour early and simply sit quietly before God with nothing to accomplish.
What Does Romans 12 Teach About a Transformed Mind?
Romans 12 is the anchor passage behind this entire message, and Montel Jordan returned to it again and again as he unpacked what it looks like to be transformed rather than conformed. Below is a summary of the five steps he taught, each one paired with the scripture behind it.
1. Reset
Step: Remove whatever has been shaping your thoughts without your permission, whether that is a screen, an appetite, or a routine.
Scripture: Second Corinthians 5:17 describes anyone in Christ as a new creation, with the old having passed away.
2. Resist
Step: Refuse to agree with negativity, doubt, or whatever the world treats as normal.
Scripture: James 4:7 instructs believers to resist the devil so that he will flee.
3. Replace
Step: Exchange the thoughts you have been feeding for whatever is true, honorable, and worthy of praise.
Scripture: Philippians 4:8 lists the kinds of things worth thinking about instead.
4. Rest
Step: Stop long enough to let your mind and body actually recover instead of running until you break down.
Scripture: Psalm 23:1 to 2 describes God making his people lie down in green pastures.
5. Repeat
Step: Turn devotion, connection, and reflection into a daily rhythm rather than a one time decision.
Scripture: Romans 12:2 calls believers to be transformed by the renewing of their mind, not conformed to the world.
A renewed mind tends to show up in practical, noticeable ways over time.
You feed your thoughts truth instead of negativity, and it shows in how you talk about yourself.
You reset a habit or routine regularly instead of waiting for a crisis to force a change.
You resist comparing your journey to someone else's highlight reel.
You choose rest before exhaustion demands it of you.
Where Can You Find a Community Like This Near You?
Trying to change the way you think while doing life completely alone is exhausting, and most people eventually realize they need others pursuing the same kind of renewal. From North Scottsdale to South Scottsdale, and from Paradise Valley to Tempe, Chandler, and Gilbert, Impact Church serves neighbors across the greater Phoenix Valley and Maricopa County. Wherever you are in the Valley, there is a place nearby where you can keep learning what it looks like to renew your mind alongside other people doing the same thing.
What Is Your Next Step Toward a Renewed Mind?
Montel Jordan's message never promised an easy fix; it offered five honest, repeatable steps rooted in scripture: reset, resist, replace, rest, and repeat. A new mindset is the beginning of a new you, and that new you can walk into new beginnings starting today, not someday. Whatever has felt stuck in your thinking does not have to stay that way.
Come find a community that will walk with you toward lasting change, and plan your visit below this Sunday.
You do not have to figure this out alone, so reach out here and submit a prayer request with our team today.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Scripture repeatedly points to God as the source of new beginnings, from Isaiah's promise that God does a new thing to the teaching that anyone in Christ becomes an entirely new creation. A new beginning is not something people manufacture through willpower alone. It starts with a changed mind that leads to a changed life.
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Transformation starts by identifying what has been shaping your thoughts and intentionally replacing it with truth. The sermon outlined five steps for this process: reset, resist, replace, rest, and repeat. Each step gives you something practical to do rather than just hoping your thinking improves on its own.
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Romans 12:2 instructs believers not to be conformed to the world but to be transformed by the renewing of their mind. Practically, that renewal happens through daily habits like limiting negative inputs, resisting harmful thought patterns, and replacing them with scripture. It is a continual process, not a one time fix.
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A reset is about removing something specific, like a habit or a screen, that has been shaping your thinking in an unhealthy way. Rest is broader; it is the ongoing practice of Sabbath that keeps your renewed mind from running back into old exhaustion. Both are necessary, but they address different parts of the process.
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Whatever a person feeds their mind tends to grow, so unchecked negativity, doubt, or comparison quietly shapes behavior over time. Resisting those thoughts as they arise, rather than letting them pass unnoticed, is part of what keeps the renewal process moving forward. It works alongside replacing those thoughts with something true.
Leave us a comment to share your favorite takeaway from the sermon and be sure to share the message with someone you care about.
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