{"id":7631,"date":"2017-08-08T08:16:34","date_gmt":"2017-08-08T08:16:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/?p=7631"},"modified":"2017-07-06T09:22:05","modified_gmt":"2017-07-06T09:22:05","slug":"the-10-most-important-things-you-need-to-know-in-life-pt-910","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/thoughts-from-the-cvm-team\/the-10-most-important-things-you-need-to-know-in-life-pt-910\/","title":{"rendered":"The 10 Most Important Things You Need To Know In Life (Pt 9\/10)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>2. Thinking clearly<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Being able to distinguish between facts and opinions. At Bible College I struggled with this transformation of the mind.<\/p>\n<p>At no.2 in the list of the top 10 important things you need to know in life we find this one, &#8216;thinking clearly&#8217;.<\/p>\n<p>Essentially this is defined as being able to distinguish between facts and opinions and then manage and think clearly in life. Valuable stuff, but I think we still need help with this at times.<\/p>\n<p>When I was at Bible College it felt like my whole faith was being dismantled. We would be presented with a series of opinions from theologians on a subject which were then discussed and explored in class. I would find myself agreeing with an opinion and feeling secure but then another angle was presented, completely different and I was then pulled that way, in the end I was stranded in the middle without a paddle.<\/p>\n<p>Therefore time at bible college was both great and terrible at the same time! It was so difficult to work out what I believed, and to be able to filter through the noise of so many views, opinions and in some cases facts.<\/p>\n<p>How we do that in life, at work and at home varies depending on what we are doing and what family and community we are part of.<\/p>\n<p>But, what I can say to you with absolute, 100% conviction is that when we invite the Holy Spirit into this process it is a game changer.<\/p>\n<p>The Bible is God\u2019s word that is living and active so when you use it in and over your life, expect things to happen.<\/p>\n<p>One of the passages in the Bible which touches on this subject is this:<br \/>\nDo 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&#8217;s will is&#8211;his good, pleasing and perfect will.<br \/>\nRomans 12:2<\/p>\n<p>I have prayed around this verse lots of times in my life, especially when the way ahead looked messed up, my mind confused and I need that clarity of thought. I have used it hour by hour in some cases, day by day or week by week, and the truth is it works.<\/p>\n<p>There is no magic here or special effects, this is just called yielding to the Holy Spirit and inviting him to have control, even over how we think.<\/p>\n<p>He will transform our thoughts, I have seen it first hand with absolute clarity, it works.<\/p>\n<p>Be transformed by the way you think, think clearly.<\/p>\n<p><img style=\"border: none;\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/team-cvm-podcast_600x200.jpg?w=750\" alt=\"team-cvm-podcast_600x200\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Image Credit: <a href=\"https:\/\/unsplash.com\/photos\/Hzi7U2SZ2GE\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Aaron Burden<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"linkwithin_hook\" id=\"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/thoughts-from-the-cvm-team\/the-10-most-important-things-you-need-to-know-in-life-pt-910\/\"><\/div><script>\n<!-- \/\/LinkWithinCodeStart\nvar linkwithin_site_id = 897245;\nvar linkwithin_div_class = \"linkwithin_hook\";\n\/\/LinkWithinCodeEnd -->\n<\/script>\n<script src=\"http:\/\/www.linkwithin.com\/widget.js\"><\/script>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/www.linkwithin.com\/\"><img src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.linkwithin.com\/pixel.png?w=750\" alt=\"Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...\" style=\"border: 0\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" \/><\/a>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>2. Thinking clearly Being able to distinguish between facts and opinions. At Bible College I struggled with this transformation of the mind. At no.2 in the list of the top 10 important things you need to know in life we find this one, &#8216;thinking clearly&#8217;. Essentially this is defined as being able to distinguish between [&hellip;]<\/p>\n<script>\n<!-- \/\/LinkWithinCodeStart\nvar linkwithin_site_id = 897245;\nvar linkwithin_div_class = \"linkwithin_hook\";\n\/\/LinkWithinCodeEnd -->\n<\/script>\n<script src=\"http:\/\/www.linkwithin.com\/widget.js\"><\/script>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/www.linkwithin.com\/\"><img src=\"http:\/\/www.linkwithin.com\/pixel.png\" alt=\"Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...\" style=\"border: 0\" \/><\/a>","protected":false},"author":64,"featured_media":7614,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/2-needs.jpg?fit=565%2C350&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7PoLK-1Z5","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":5326,"url":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/demolition-squad\/the-bible-part-one\/","url_meta":{"origin":7631,"position":0},"title":"The Bible &#8211; Part I","date":"25 May 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"For Christians the Bible is the central text of our faith. It is the book. As meticulously studied by scholars as it is treasured by Christ\u2019s followers, it has comforted, challenged, provoked, and outraged countless people over thousands of years. Oft quoted and ever paraphrased, and yet faithfully transmitted, translated,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Demolition Squad&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/the-bible-part-one.jpg?fit=560%2C340&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3508,"url":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/demolition-squad\/the-historical-jesus\/","url_meta":{"origin":7631,"position":1},"title":"The Historical Jesus","date":"14 December 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"The great, British philosopher Bertrund Russell once said, \u201cHistorically it is quite doubtful whether Christ ever existed at all, and if He did we do now know anything about Him.\u201d Why I Am Not A Christian Jesus Christ is arguably the most influential man in the whole of human history.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Demolition Squad&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/12\/dem_squad_default_image.png?fit=256%2C256&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":6041,"url":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/demolition-squad\/the-facts-of-the-resurrection-part-ii\/","url_meta":{"origin":7631,"position":2},"title":"The Facts of The Resurrection (Part II)","date":"1 April 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"The \u201cminimal facts\u201d of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ are there to be investigated. In the first part of this series we looked at Fact 1: Jesus Died, and asked whether the \u2018swoon theory\u2019 held any weight. Today we move on to the second fact. (Skip ahead to Fact 3:\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Demolition Squad&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/resurrection-part2.jpg?fit=1200%2C523&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":2812,"url":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/the-welford\/emphasis\/","url_meta":{"origin":7631,"position":3},"title":"Emphasis","date":"29 August 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"There is a man who stands in the town centre. He has done it for years. This photo is his latest sign. What do you think? I mean, technically he\u2019s not wrong is he? But is it the best emphasis given all the richness there is in God? Do we\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Welford&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":5373,"url":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/demolition-squad\/the-bible-part-iii\/","url_meta":{"origin":7631,"position":4},"title":"The Bible &#8211; Part III","date":"6 June 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"The Bible is an extraordinary book. As well as being the most-read, and the best-selling book in the English language \u2013 and in nearly every English-speaking hotel bedside table \u2013 it stands up exceptionally well to various tests put before it. In part 2 of this series we took a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Demolition Squad&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/the-bible-part-three.jpg?fit=560%2C340&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":6026,"url":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/demolition-squad\/the-facts-of-the-resurrection-part-i\/","url_meta":{"origin":7631,"position":5},"title":"The Facts of The Resurrection (Part I)","date":"31 March 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"The Resurrection of Jesus Christ is the focal point of the Christian faith. The whole of Christianity hinges upon it. What happened 2,000 years ago in Jerusalem is incredibly important to us today precisely because something did happen. The Christian faith is built on historical events that present themselves to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Demolition Squad&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/03\/resurrection-part1.jpg?fit=1200%2C523&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7631"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/64"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7631"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7631\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7660,"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7631\/revisions\/7660"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7614"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7631"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7631"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7631"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}