These may not be openly expressed, but they are strong—and their hold on our thoughts and actions remain a constant. It has been said that opinions are the things that we say, but a conviction is what holds us. There are a number of different ways to understand this, but one example in Scripture is the event where men came voicing strong opinions that the woman who had been caught in adultery should be stoned. Jesus stooped down and wrote in the sand. We don’t know what Jesus wrote, but the accusers dropped the stones and left. Their conscience came to the forefront (John 8:9).

Conversion is when our hearts change. The Bible and the teaching of God’s servants stir something deep within a person. He or she becomes convinced the Bible’s teachings are true, and then they gain the convictions and take them unto themselves (1 Corinthians 14:24-25). Allow God to work His convictions in you!