You're Not What You Think

Do you ever catch yourself overthinking and wonder if your thoughts truly define who you are?

In today's episode, host Lauren Alessi invites us to explore the powerful message behind Romans 12:2 and the idea that "You're Not What You Think." Together, we'll unpack how to renew our minds when negative thoughts try to shape our identity, why our thoughts don't have the final say over who we are, and how God’s perspective transforms the way we see ourselves. Drawing from her own experiences and her background as a counselor, Lauren Alessi shares practical encouragement for anyone who finds themselves getting stuck in their head or believing labels that don’t belong to them.

Let’s pursue a healthier thought life as a community. Join us in devotion and prayer, and let’s remind each other who we truly are in Christ.

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Transcript

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You're listening to the My Morning Devotional Podcast, episode 1488. Today's devo is called You're Not What You Think. Hey there, we're the Alessis, a ministry family working together in our church in Miami, Florida. And if you're like us, when days get busy and to-do lists get longer, it can be hard to find devotional time. That's why we've partnered with our friend Allison to produce a 5-minute daily dose of of Heaven. This is the My Morning Devotional Podcast. Hello everyone, my name is Lorna Lessie and I am your host for this week. I hope you are enjoying this week. Um, please leave a comment if you are. Um, again, this is just me trying to be vulnerable, guys. No, I'm totally kidding. Um, this is just how I process. Um, if you relate to it, I hope it is blessing you. I know a lot of people struggle with getting in their thoughts if you don't relate to it, but you know someone who does, like for example, my sister Gabby, I'm honestly jealous of her. She's like not a heady person at all. She's just like, why get in your head? Just talk about it. I'm like, that's such a great mindset. I wish I was like that. Um, but we all have different strengths and different gifts, so it's fine. Um, but if you know someone who can be blessed by this, why don't you go ahead and send it to him, to them? Because trust me, heady people, people who get stuck in their head a lot, they need to be encouraged to get out of their head, and they need to know that God doesn't want them to get stuck in their head. So go ahead and send this to them this week, this episode. I, I just— not just because of it's me, but it'll bless them. So let's just dive right into the word. Today's episode is called You're Not What You Think. And we are reading out of Romans 12:2, and it says this Be transformed by the renewing of your mind. So I'm actually a counselor, and when it comes to counseling, this is my favorite verse. I really do believe that as counselors, this is like our mission verse. When we counsel people as Christians, this is our goal to transform people by the renewing of their mind, to change their thoughts, to truly transform them by the renewing of your mind. And this whole verse actually says, do not conform to the patterns of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. So what does this really teach us? That our thoughts are actually very, very, very powerful, but they are not our identity. And what does that look like? When I was a little girl, my— a lot of people would call me shy. Everybody would come up to me and be like, "Ay, she's just so shy." And I grew up in Miami, South Florida, where everybody wants to come and just tell you, like, even if they've met you twice, it's like they just know you really well. And I'm like, "You don't know me." But we're all family and we're all super close and we all hang out and it's great. But my father would get very, very defensive of me because he knew that I wasn't shy. And I don't know if I've shared this before on the podcast, maybe I have, I don't know. But my father would get very defensive because he knew deep down, Lauren's not shy, she's just more quiet. She's just reserved. And when she gets home, she's actually the opposite of shy. She's very open, she's very fun, she's very witty. So since I was a little girl, he would always, always correct people. Lauren's not shy, she's not shy. She could be quiet, but she's not shy. And when I'd get home, He would tell me, "You're not shy, Lauren. You can be quiet, but you can't be shy." And I just remember being a little girl like, "I didn't do anything, but okay," which is funny. Dads are great. Dads are funny. But I use this example to say my thoughts could have easily gone to, "Well, I'm just shy, and that's just who I am." And that could have easily been my identity. But my dad quickly stopped me from letting my thoughts get there because my thoughts are not my identity. And I think that's what God is telling us here in the word. Be transformed by the renewing of your mind every single day. Just because you have thoughts that you are a certain person does not mean that you are a certain person. You can have fears and thoughts of, I'll never be the, the greatest provider of my household and the greatest husband or wife, um, to my spouse, or I'll never be the greatest employee. You can have those thoughts. That's kind of what thoughts are, and that's what they do. That's kind of thought's job, right, is to come and go and to freak you out. Um, but if they start becoming your identity, that's on you. And that's where you need to step in and say, I'm going to be transformed by the renewing of my mind and be in the word of God every day, because I am the head and not the tail, and I'm a child of God, and I will be a great provider of my household, and I am a secure, confident person, and I am a great wife, and I am a great husband, and I am a great father and mother to my children, and I provide a great life for the people around me, and I have a great personality. And whatever that may look like, that's on us not to get in our head and make our thoughts our identity, but to make sure we take every thought captive submit it to Christ, but to make sure we're then coming in and renewing our mind with godly thoughts. So that can simply look like when we're saying like, I messed everything up, I'm just a failure. No, God is still working in my life. I didn't— maybe I messed one thing up, but it didn't mean I messed everything up. God is still working. So I just want to encourage us all, me included, that We can have those thoughts. That's kind of like I said, the job of thoughts and thought patterns. But it's on us if we allow those thoughts to link up with our identity. So let's pray, because you are not what you think. Dear Lord, we thank you so much. Again, Lord, you want us to have a healthy thought life, Lord. You don't want us to sync up with something we're not, Lord. You want us to be healthy children You want us to have good thoughts about us. And ultimately, Lord, you want us to see us the way you see us, Lord. And I feel like I said us so many times, Lord, but who even cares? I'm just grateful for a God who wants his children to be confident. So, Lord, help us see each other the way you see us, Lord, and help us renew our mind and be in the word every day, Lord. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. So there you have it, your 5-minute daily dose of heaven. Thank you so much for tuning in today. We pray these devotionals empower you to take on your day. If you found value in this devotional, share it with a friend, leave a comment or review for us on the app you're using right now. Until tomorrow, we pray that your latte is strong, but your love for Jesus is stronger.