The Power of Communion by Beni Johnson

Author:Beni Johnson [Johnson, Bill]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Destiny Image, Inc.

FAITH MAKES US HUMAN AGAIN

Memory is a powerful tool. It shapes our present by creating expectation for repetition. The brain is literally creating pathways from your thought patterns. Some of the discussion of this began in the New Age movement, but now scientists who study the brain are confirming what the Bible says: What you allow your mind to dwell on shapes your expectations and, ultimately, your perception of the world. The neurons in the brain strengthen and change with our thought patterns. The more you make certain connections, the more likely your brain will make that connection in the future. Some describe it similarly to the way a popular hiking trail gets worn down and widened. For example, if you’re used to thinking the world is out to get you, that neuropathway will have a strong connection in your brain. Something might happen to you, and you think, “Well, there it goes again. I knew bad things happen to me.”

But, the grace of the Lord always makes room for transformation. You can change these neuropathways by what you set your mind on. As Dr. Stokes, a psychologist, explains, “…as you practice traveling down new pathways, you naturally weaken old pathways. As you think similar thoughts and feel similar feelings, you either create new habits and beliefs or solidify old ones. Eventually, through repetition and feeling intensity, your new habits run on autopilot.”2 So, when Paul writes to the Colossians and advises them, “Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God” (Col. 3:2-3 NASB), it’s not just a nice idea. It’s actually advice that will change the “hardwiring” of our brains. We are new creations. We know a reality that is greater than any circumstance we can see. We have “the mind of Christ,” and God is inviting us to use it. (See 1Cor. 2:16.)

Bill spoke about the power of testimonies recently. At Bethel, sharing testimonies is a big part of our culture. We have a two-hour senior staff meeting each week where we spend 90 percent of the time sharing about what the Lord is doing all over the earth. It’s amazing to hear about the miracles. The world is truly getting better all of the time. But when we hear those, we don’t just stop with marveling at God’s goodness. We also say, “Do it again, God!” As Bill says, the power of the testimony never depreciates. Whenever you revisit a story of God’s faithfulness or His divine disruption in your life, you are revisiting a place of divine encounter. Remembering what He’s done in your life never loses power. God is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. So when you hear of a miracle that has happened in someone else’s life, you know that God has just set the legal precedent of what He wants to continue. Testimonies are not just fond memories. They have a lifespan that’s eternal.

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