1 Corinthians 2:16 – For, "Who has known the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?" But we have the mind of Christ. (NIV 2011)

My collie, Bonnie, and my retriever, Sophie, were born only two months apart. They are now almost four years old, but what a handful they were the first couple of years.

Training them to work together was a challenge, until they developed what I think of as shared brain syndrome. It's as if they have come to share one mind as we travel the paths together or work with the livestock. Each one always seems to know what the other one is thinking, and they act accordingly, so the tasks go smoothly and more productively.

As I pondered this, I thought of the great gift with which God has blessed us as His children: the mind of Christ.

When we accept Christ as Lord and Saviour, He enters our very being in the form of His Holy Spirit. The mind of Christ becomes part of us.

Much like Bonnie and Sophie though, it takes time and effort to reach a point of working successfully together on a regular basis.

The apostle Paul shares with us how to do this:

Romans 12:2 – Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is — his good, pleasing and perfect will. (NIV 2011)

We must, with the help of the Spirit, learn day by day to recognize the pattern of this world in comparison to the will of God, and in recognizing it, to be willing to resist it in favour of obedience to God's ways. The more that we do this, the more that we are able to develop shared brain syndrome, a phenomenon that blesses us with God's discernment and wisdom in our lives more and more, allowing us to work more successfully and productively together. This is something which benefits not only ourselves but also the whole world as we seek to win lost souls for God's kingdom.

Prayer: Father God, thank You so much for the mind of Christ which dwells within each Christian. Help us to yield ourselves to the quiet prompting of Your Spirit, that we may not conform to the pattern of this world, but have transformed minds obedient to Your will and way. In Christ's name, we ask. Amen.

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About the author:

Lynne Phipps <lynnephippsatlin@gmail.com>
Tawatinaw, Alberta, Canada
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