Seven Secrets for Becoming the Person You Want to Be

Sermon Text: 1 Peter 3:8-12 (sermon from Mount Paran, 1-18-09, Dr. David Cooper, so good I had to share!)

Who you are is more important than what you do.

We desire to be what God ordained us to be, but sin prevents us from it.

We are all ordained/have a calling for something.

John 3:30 Jesus must increase; I must decrease. Romans 8:29, 2 Corinthians 3:18 mirrors/transformed.

Character is what you would do if you knew you wouldn't get caught.

How do you become the person you want to be?

Remember that you become like:

1. The thoughts you think. (Romans 12:2). Dominant, not random thoughts. Guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life. Listen to a person's prayer life, and you can read their mind. Prayerlessness is a symptom of self-centeredness.

2. The words you speak. (Matthew 12:34-37). You will spend 1/5 of your life talking. Words have the power to shape destiny. They have both the power to wound and to heal. The tongue is the only tool that gets sharper with use. Romans 10:9.

3. The decisions you make. (1 Kings 18:21, John 7:17). Destiny is over-rated. It creates a fantasy world. You decide your destiny by the choices you make. You are God created, but self-molded. God gives you the freedom to choose. Choose this day whom you will serve. We aren't irresponsible because we're sick; we're sick because we're irresponsible.

4. The people with whom you associate. (Ecclesiastes 4:9-12, 1 Cor 15:33). Choose your friends carefully. They can lead you down paths that are away from God.

• You may need to renew some beneficial relationships, those that have brought blessing into our lives
• You may need to realign some relationships and set some boundaries where other people are concerned.
• And with some people, you need to just remove them from your life because they are harmful.

5. The love you share. (1 Cor 13:13, Luke 6:38) The heart gets bigger with exercise. If the greatest of these is love, why do we hear so little about it? You reap what you sow…. It's not about what you will get, but who you will become. The Mayo Clinic says to give yourself away to deal with depression.

6. The money you spend (Matt. 6:21). Money is an extension of who you are. Where you spend and invest your money is where your heart is. Money is taking your heart, and you don't even know it. It forms your character. The current state of your character determines what you'll do with your money. You write your autobiography by your checkbook. Critical people are not generous. Thanks / giving – gratitude and generosity follow the same path. The current economic crisis has revealed the heart of this nation. Hebrews 13:5-7, Matthew 3:8, 1 Timothy 5:5-6, 17) God will provide, if I trust.

7. The God you worship. (2 Cor. 3:18) Keep yourself from idols. You pick your church based on what is inside of you and you should grow more like the God you worship. Reflect=look at, behold. The thing you look at, you will become like.

God, to the missionary who was depressed about the lack of converts in Scotland: "I am not making a ministry; I am making a man."

Who I am is really the only legacy I get to leave behind.