Renovation of the Heart

This is a book I'm reading by Dallas Willard and Jan Johnson. I received it as a gift last spring and am finally reading it in all my spare time. ;) But seriously the chapters are all 2-3 pages so it's really easy to catch a chapter here or there and feel like I'm actually reading a book!!! :) And this one is so good. It's so convicting and I love to be told the truth even when it's hard to hear. I chose an excerpt to share with you but it was difficult!!! I wanted to share so many passages that I think are so good. But you should just buy the book yourself because it's that good.

Here are a couple paragraphs from chapter 3 which is titled Change Me on the Inside:
Our lives are a result of what we have become in the depths of our being - what we call our spirit, will, or heart. From there we see our world and interpret reality. From there we make choices, break forth into action, and try to change our world. That is why the greatest need of collective humanity is the renovation of our heart. (LOVE that!)

Accordingly, the revolution of Jesus involves the objective of eventually bringing all of human life under the direction of his wisdom, goodness, and power as part of God's eternal plan for the universe. The revolution of Jesus is one of character, which proceeds by changing people from the inside through an ongoing personal relationship to God in Christ and to one another. It changes their ideas, beliefs, feelings, habits of choice, bodily tendencies, and social relations. From these persons, social structures will naturally be transfored so that "justice roll(s) down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream" (Amos 5:24). Such streams cannot flow through corrupted souls.

Spiritual formation for the Christian refers to the Spirit-driven process of forming the inner world of the human self so that it becomes like the inner being of Christ himself. (!) To the degree in which spiritual formation in Christ is successful, the outer life of the individual becomes a natural outflow of the character and teachings of Jesus. Christian spiritual formation is focused entirely on Jesus. Its goal is conformity to Christ that arises out of an inner transformation accomplished through purposeful interaction with the grace of God in Christ. Obedience is an essential outcome of Christian spiritual formation (see John 13:34-35; 14:21)...

Are you still with me??? Hang in there!

...When we say phrases such as, "He caught me off guard," or, "That bad word just slipped out," we refer to the truth that our outer actions aren't accidental - they mirror our character within. When regrettable words "slip out," we didn't have time to dress up what was in our heart before it came tumbling out of our mouth. Unsavory thoughts leak out in objectionable words and behavior. Such "slips" reveal publicly the private inner working of our heart. Jesus explained that "out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks" (Luke 6:45).

Our task, then, is to cooperate with God in being changed on the inside so that we take on the personality of Christ. As we let what is stored in our heart be transformed, we behave as Jesus would behave.

If our insides are renovated, what comes out of us will bring about peace and righteousness. (I LOVE that statement) We won't have to try to love. Unloving thoughts and actions simply won't occur to us (hallelujah!), just as loving ones will begin to spring up without our awareness...To cooperate with public greed or dishonesty will offend us to the core, and we'll find ourselves unable to do it.

Okay, so that was almost the whole third chapter but it's all so good! Isn't is SO true??? And so scary to think that some of the ugly things that come out of my mouth reveal what my heart is really like. Ouch. Lord, change me on the inside!