Transforming the heart is the central vision of renovation, because the heart is where all choices are made. When you actually intend to surrender to God’s will in your life, your heart will try to figure out every way possible why you can’t or why you don’t need to. This will come out of your own nature; fueled by the tempting of the evil one.

This is why as you begin this heart “transplant,” don’t expect it to be easy. It is simple to understand and hard to do. What is necessary is to confess your need for transformation and to continue surrendering to God. In other words, "Repent."

Now "repentance" isn't just about repenting from sin. To repent is to "change our thinking." "Change our mind." We repent from sin, indeed, but we also repent when we change direction to new focus in our lives.

God works with us along the way, and makes it more and more possible for us to actually participate with him. There are tools God has set up for transformation. Let's look at some of these.

silence and solitude
“Jesus went out in the desert alone."

”Lord, where did you go? We couldn’t find you.”

Before most major decisions he makes, as recorded in the Bible Jesus spends time alone and prays. Why?

Silence and solitude are spiritual disciplines with a rich history. Spending time alone and quiet is a refreshment for your very soul.

When he was younger, I asked one of our sons why he thought Jesus was so fond of being alone and he said, “To get away from all the sin for awhile."

Like soldiers at war spending time alone before battle; it is good to get away. As followers of Jesus, we do battle with the forces of the Evil One. And also with silence and solitude, we break from all the busyness of business, the ups and downs of our daily lives, and we begin to give them over to God.

How do we do this? Here is one suggestion:

• Start with 10 minutes or so at the end of each day, reviewing what happened. Go to a room alone or go for a walk and reflect on the day's events. Review where you may forgiveness from God, and pray what is on your mind. Then just spend time listening.

  After all, you wouldn't talk to a friend about life and then when you were done, say, "OK, gotta go…"

• This practice may turn into more than 10 minutes, but begin here and see what happens.

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