Change Your Mind, Change Your Situation
“When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, ‘Do you want to get well?’” - John 5:6
Yesterday, we began unpacking the story of the man by the pool in John 5. A man who had this “condition” for 38 years. We learn that in the Greek version of the text, it just says the man is there. It does not say he has a “condition.” We see the shocking question Jesus asks the man in verse 6, “Do you want to get well?”
What Jesus wanted to do was to get his mind right because if he could fix the man’s mind, then the man could fix his own reality. The problem that many people face is not in their physiology, but in their psychology, not in their body, but in their brain. If you can get your mind right, you would be able to take the requisite steps to change and transform your life.
You know people like that who are restricted by the shackles on their wrists and feet, are actually shackled by the chains on their brain. James Allen writes in his book, as a Man Thinketh (the title derived from Proverbs 23:7), that “You are today where your thoughts have brought you; you will be tomorrow where your thoughts take you… The visions you glorify in your mind. The ideals enthroned in your heart… This you will build your life by… This you will become.”
So, when Jesus asked the man, “Do you want to be made well?” He is trying to get us to tap into the power our thought life has in shaping our future. As a man or a woman or a teenager or a child thinks in his or her heart, Proverbs 23:7 says, so are they. It is just that simple. It is not to deny the reality of our external circumstances, but it is to point to the power God placed within us to rise above our circumstances.
This fresh look at the problem at the pool suggests that you and I might have more power within us than we think. We might have more at our disposal than we realize. That is what Jesus was trying to say to the man then and to us now, that if you change your mind, you can change your situation.
Yesterday, we began unpacking the story of the man by the pool in John 5. A man who had this “condition” for 38 years. We learn that in the Greek version of the text, it just says the man is there. It does not say he has a “condition.” We see the shocking question Jesus asks the man in verse 6, “Do you want to get well?”
What Jesus wanted to do was to get his mind right because if he could fix the man’s mind, then the man could fix his own reality. The problem that many people face is not in their physiology, but in their psychology, not in their body, but in their brain. If you can get your mind right, you would be able to take the requisite steps to change and transform your life.
You know people like that who are restricted by the shackles on their wrists and feet, are actually shackled by the chains on their brain. James Allen writes in his book, as a Man Thinketh (the title derived from Proverbs 23:7), that “You are today where your thoughts have brought you; you will be tomorrow where your thoughts take you… The visions you glorify in your mind. The ideals enthroned in your heart… This you will build your life by… This you will become.”
So, when Jesus asked the man, “Do you want to be made well?” He is trying to get us to tap into the power our thought life has in shaping our future. As a man or a woman or a teenager or a child thinks in his or her heart, Proverbs 23:7 says, so are they. It is just that simple. It is not to deny the reality of our external circumstances, but it is to point to the power God placed within us to rise above our circumstances.
This fresh look at the problem at the pool suggests that you and I might have more power within us than we think. We might have more at our disposal than we realize. That is what Jesus was trying to say to the man then and to us now, that if you change your mind, you can change your situation.
Subscribe Now for Free Daily Devotions
Recent
Archive
2025
January
Plenty of RoomThankful for Your SeatWho God Invites to the TableThat’s the PointWe Do Not Have a Monopoly on GodStop Talking So LoudLet God Handle the Guest ListA Long-Awaited ReunionSeeing Jesus for YourselfIn Possession of a Personal PromiseGet in the Right PositionReady to ReceiveAligning Your Life for God's PromiseWaiting with ExpectancyGrounded in PrayerStrength in PrayerPatience Through PrayerStay Focused Through PrayerGod's Conditional PromisesGod’s PriorityGrounded in FaithTrusting God's TimingThe Assurance of God's PromisesIs It Well With Your Soul?Health vs. HealingStewarding Your BodyA Holistic View of SpiritualityGod Cares About Your BodyWhat You Put in MattersNourishing Your SoulThe Power of Prevention
February
The Power of a ComebackHealing from the PastStop Blaming and Start TrustingBury the Past to Claim the FutureFacing Trauma with TruthCelebrate That You SurvivedRepair What is BrokenNothing God Can’t FixDon’t Swing at Bad PitchesStick to God’s PlanDon’t Let Desperation Drive YouShift Your WeightWho Knows Best?A Good Idea Isn’t Always a God IdeaPeace in God’s PlanFinding Purpose in God’s PlanProsperity in God’s PlanTrusting God’s Plan, Pace, and ProcessKnowing When to PivotGod Hasn’t Given Up on YouNext-Level Faith Requires PerseveranceA New Revelation of GodIt’s Not All About YouNext-Level ConnectionsNext-Level CommitmentA Prayer That Moves GodPrayers That Carry a BurdenPray With Boldness
March
A Solid FoundationPositioned for BlessingMarked by LoveTrust God's JudgmentRest in God's DeliveranceLet Go of ControlWhat You Want MostWhy Church Still MattersFaith in the Midst of DisappointmentJoy for the JourneyA Place of SafetyStrength in CommunityPeace in the ChaosThe Purpose of the ValleySeasons ChangeUnshaken in the StormHold OnThe Power of ResilienceNever AloneGod Is Closer Than You ThinkLet Go of WorryLet Go of WorryBelieve Before You SeeResilient FaithHow to Be a Success God's WayTrue Success Starts with the SoulSuccess Through SurrenderCharacter That Speaks for ItselfThe Power of Being RealKeep GrowingSuccess in the Face of Opposition
No Comments