Since There is No Magic Pill for Spiritual Growth, Do This!

29 Oct Since There is No Magic Pill for Spiritual Growth, Do This!

In her helpful book, Switch on Your Brain, Christian neuroscientist Dr. Caroline Leaf makes a striking statement that should cause the hearts of committed Christians to sing: Structured repetition of helpful information, guided and focused attention, and the strategic feeding of our minds will foster improved cognitive functioning, emotional health, and mental and spiritual perception. Let’s look at little more closely at that remarkable statement:

• Structured repetition
• Guided and focused attention
• Strategic feeding of our minds…

  …will foster…

• Improved cognitive functioning
• Emotional health
• Mental and spiritual perception.

  In other words, you become:

• Smarter
• Emotionally healthier
• More perceptive

  Think of that!  Would you like to be smarter, emotionally healthier and have greater mental and spiritual perception?  If there were a pill that you could take that would give you all that, would you take it?  Boy, I would. Well, there’s bad news and there’s good news.  The bad news is that there is not a pill you can take that will give you improved cognitive functioning, emotional health, and spiritual perception.  The good news is that there are things you can do for free that will! You just have to engage in:

• structured repetition of helpful information,
• guided and focused attention of helpful information, and
• strategic feeding of your mind.

  It’s simple!  It’s not easy, but it’s simple! When we integrate the information from neuroscience with what we know from Scripture, we see this correlation:

• Structured repetition of helpful information = memorization of Scripture and other truth
• Guided and focused attention = meditation on Scripture and other truth
• Strategic feeding of our minds = study and other mental renewal strategies

  By coupling neurological research with biblical truth, we find that we can deploy our mind in three helpful ways.

1. Structured Repetition = Memorization. (Matthew 4:1-11)

Neuroscience tells us that as we repeat vital information, the mental activity creates protein pockets in the brain that store the information, and wears pathways in the brain to make that information accessible to information stored elsewhere in the brain. This is a powerful process that puts information “at the ready” in our brains that increases creativity, enables us to connect dots that we were not able to connect before, to provide answers to questions, insight into difficulties, and options for opportunities. In addition, the repetition drives the information into our subconscious, transforming our innate attitudes, values and behavior. We feed our subconscious and then our subconscious feeds us. Memorizing Scripture so well that you do not have to struggle to recall it is a powerful weapon for success in the spiritual war in which we all find ourselves. When Jesus was led out into the wilderness where He was tempted by the devil (Matthew 4), each time He was tempted, Jesus resisted the temptation by quoting Scripture to him. I am persuaded that Jesus quoted those Scriptures, not out of His omniscience as God, but out of His humanity… out of the fact that as a faithful little Jewish boy, He memorized those Scriptures at His mother’s knee. And neuroscience tells us that not just Scripture, but any positive and helpful information we memorize, becomes a powerful resource we can use for all of life’s challenges and opportunities.

2. Focused attention = Meditation (Psalm 1:1-3)

Psalm 1:1-3 says that when we meditate on the Word day and night, we become “like a tree firmly planted by rivers of water, which yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither and in whatever he does, he prospers.” While memorization of Scripture is a vital and powerful practice, it is made exponentially more powerful by meditating on it. The protein pockets in the brain that house memory become even larger, the pathways that connect that information with other information in the brain become even deeper, and the ability to answer questions, have insight into difficulties, and to see options for opportunities becomes even greater. Again, Dr. Leaf writes, “When we quiet our minds, focus our attention on one issue, capture our thoughts, and dismiss the distractions that come our way, we gain increasing control over our brain, leading to impressive improvement in cognitive functioning and emotional balance.”

3. Strategic Feeding = Renewal Strategies (Colossians 3:2)

Colossians 3:2 says, “Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth.”. A third vital component of deploying the mind in helpful ways is to set our minds… to strategically feed and focus our minds on additional information that will further our biblical goals and purposes in life. All truth is God’s truth, and there is a wealth of information from godly Bible teachers, Christian authors, bloggers, books, online courses, etc., consistent with Scripture that will help us understand how to more fully apply truth to our lives. We cannot live something until we know it. Knowledge is power. The more we know, and the more we reinforce that knowledge through repetition, the more powerful we become in living strategic and intentional lives. Jesus said, “You shall know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:32) To the degree that we do not know truth, we will be vulnerable to ignorance and deception. To the degree that we do know truth, and deploy that truth in our minds, we can use our minds in effective ways to further our biblical purposes in life. Conclusion So, again, while there is no magic pill we can take that will make us smarter, emotionally healthier and more perceptive, God has nevertheless placed those things within the grasp of each of us. But, we must deploy our minds the way God has revealed in Scripture and further explained through neuroscience. As we dedicate ourselves to memorizing and meditating on Scripture and on strategically feeding our minds information that reinforces God’s truth in our minds, we become more than we will ever be otherwise, and enter into the fullness of life that God provides for His children. If you want to take a next step toward this process, download my free video, “Master the Bible So Well That the Bible Masters You,” which includes a list of superverses that every Christian should master, as well as tips on how to meditate.

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