By: Catriona Futter
The apostle Paul tells us in Romans 12:2 that we are no longer to be conformed to the pattern of this world but be transformed by renewing our minds.
Why do we find this so hard?
Many of those that I work with describe having an inner mental critic. Some call it their chimp. Or a negative voice — it might be their own, it might be something spoken to them at an earlier stage in life. But the impact of that inner negative voice can be hugely significant: fear, anxiety, low confidence, self-doubt, people pleasing, trying to regain control. Not the path to a transformed and renewed mind.
It can be easy to believe that we are stuck here — it’s just the way I am, I’ve always been like this, this is how my family operates, these are family scripts I’m stuck with, I can’t/won’t/don’t know how to change.
And my experience is that trying to change what is going on in our minds by force of will and mental effort rarely works. We absolutely need God’s help. But we also need to understand the impact our emotions have on what is going on in our minds.
Labeling Emotions
Emotions are normal, and we experience them all the time. And, importantly, emotions are neutral. The problem can come when we label emotions as either good or bad. If we tell ourselves that fear or anger or resentment or anxiety are ‘bad’ emotions and we shouldn’t feel them because we are Christians, we tend to suppress those emotions without allowing their expression. And suppressed emotions will not go away, they simply lie in wait to hijack us at an inopportune moment.
When we are facing a difficult situation, it is normal to feel fear and anxiety. It is important that we understand what is going on in our minds — our minds are perceiving that situation as a threat to our safety or value, and the fear and anxiety are part of the fight/flight response to prompt us to take remedial action. These protective mechanisms are there for a good reason — back in the day the threat would have been a sabre tooth tiger, and running away was the right thing to do. But now, our brains still go into fight or flight mode when the danger is not something we necessarily need to run away from.
So, the first step towards renewing our minds is to identify and name the emotions that we naturally and often feel, without judgment.
✨ Want more encouragement? Read the full article in Just Between Us Magazine on Substack—your weekly source of biblical encouragement for women.
