“Put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.” — Colossians 3:10

The focus of our hearts and minds will determine the choices we make and the actions we take. If we starve ourselves of Scripture and feast on the fading trends of the culture, then we will inevitably find ourselves lost among the crowd and failing to experience the life we were meant to live.

It is tragic that so many among the Christian community fail to experience the new life they were meant to live simply because they lack the discipline to focus their hearts and minds on the new life with Christ. Many of us fall into old patterns and give in to old habits simply because we are failing to focus on the new life Christ has given us.

In his letter to the Colossians, Paul tells Christians to intentionally put on the new you which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of your Creator. This is an astonishing proclamation! Paul is saying that now, in Christ, human beings can once again be what God intended for us to be from the beginning. This means that the truest form of human existence is found in experiencing the new life with Christ.

When you fail to focus your heart and mind on the new you, then you are experiencing and living a subhuman existence. We will only experience the life we were meant to live when we focus on the new life that Christ has given us.

— Terry Evans, Atlanta Braves chaplain

The Increase, part of the Sports Spectrum Network, is a community of Christian pro athletes sharing their personal stories of the decrease of self and the increase of Christ (John 3:30). Visit TheIncrease.com for more stories and videos.