From The Inside Out, or The Outside In?

This morning I had the pleasure of waking before my children (an occurrence that is starting to happen quite frequently, thank you Lord!). I was able to start my day in the best way possible, reading the Word without interruption. As I played Bible roulette, I flipped through and saw some interesting commentaries. After reading through these, they led me to Romans 8. The struggle of flesh vs. Spirit is so familiar, yet convicting. My favorite verses are verse 5 and 9. Verse 5 says, "Those who are dominated by the sinful nature, think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Holy Spirit." So, when I was focused on myself, I was focused on the sin of selfishness. Even if I was doing all the right things on the outside, the inside was not focused on pleasing the Spirit. Sure, there were times I would be focused on the Spirit. But many times I would be bitter, angry, selfish. And for what? Really, nothing. The true conviction of this verse for me? If your mind is dominated by sin, it doesn't matter what you are doing on the outside. Verse 9 gives us guidance and hope. "But you are not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the Spirit, if you have the Spirit of God living in you. (And remember, those of you who don't have the Spirit of Christ living in you are not Christians at all.)" So, if you have the Spirit of God living in you, you will allow the Spirit to control you. This is not some kind of mind control robot thing. It is a freedom from the bondage of sin. This control by the Spirit is what produces the fruits of the Spirit. Say no to the flesh, say yes to Christ's leading. "For all who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God." Romans 8:14. Let the Spirit lead you so you can produce the fruit He designed for you. Don't let the outside appearance fool you. It might look great, but if the inside leading doesn't match, it is all for nothing. I know this outside appearance was like blinders for me. I did what the Lord wanted me to do outwardly, but my thoughts were often selfish and focused on sin. I am focused on allowing the Spirit to lead me now, and I want the inside and outside to match. I want all the dedication to the things of God outwardly, to match the thoughts and feelings inwardly. Thank you Lord for shedding light on this subject for me! I'm actually not even sure how I got to this place from these verses, but hopefully it makes sense to someone out there...