Holy Habits: Meditation
What does meditation mean to you?
Verse of the Day
“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing to you, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.”
Today’s Devotional
Let’s get some things out of the way. Meditation does not mean sitting in a fancy criss-cross-applesauce pose while holding our hands in a weird position and chanting “oooommmm”. That’s what it might mean to some people, but I do not believe that’s what the Bible means when it refers to meditation.
Let’s look at what the Bible does say about meditation:
- ‘Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do.’ Joshua 1:8
- ‘I meditate on your precepts and consider your ways.’ Psalms 119:15
- ‘May my meditation be pleasing to him, as I rejoice in the Lord .’ Psalms 104:34 NIV ‘May all my thoughts be pleasing to him, for I rejoice in the Lord.’ Psalms 104:34 NLT
- ‘And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.’ Philippians 4:8
- ‘I remember the days of long ago; I meditate on all your works and consider what your hands have done.’ Psalms 143:5
Following are my “highlights” from Richard Foster’s chapter on meditation. (For those of you who do not like to read these kinds of books…you’re welcome.)
- Christian meditation, very simply, is the ability to hear God’s voice and obey his word.
- True contemplation is not a psychological trick but a theological grace. (Thomas Merton)
- From the Bible, we see that God spoke to many different people. God spoke to them not because they had special abilities, but because they were willing to listen.
- What happens in meditation is that we create the emotional and spiritual space which allows Christ to construct an inner sanctuary in the heart.
- Eastern meditation is an attempt to empty the mind. Christian meditation is an attempt to fill the mind. The eastern methods teach us to detach, but “we must go on to attachment. Detachment from the confusion all around us in order to have a richer attachment to God.”
- Repentance and obedience are essential features in any biblical understanding of mediation.
- Anyone who imagines he can simply begin meditating without praying for the desire and the grace to do so will soon give up. But the desire to meditate, and the grace to begin meditating should be taken as an implicit promise of further graces.
OK, great. So how do I do it? Great question.
The first thing we must do is pray. We ask God for His help to carve out space and time to focus our mind on Him and on His Word.
After that, there are many forms of meditation. We pick which one sounds right for each one of us to practice, after we have prayed and asked for God’s guidance. Here are some meditation techniques:
- Focus on one verse of Scripture. Write it on a card and spend 5 (or more) minutes reading that one verse. Ask God to speak to you through His Word.
- Focus on one chapter from the Bible. Read it every day for a month, asking each day for fresh insight.
- Palms up-palms down meditation: “Begin by placing your palms down in a symbolic indication of your desire to turn over any concerns you may have to God. Inwardly you may pray, “Lord, I give you my anger. I release my fear. I surrender my anxiety. (Be specific about the instances and situations of anger, fear, anxiety, frustration, etc.) After several moments of surrender, turn your palms up as a symbol of your desire to receive from the Lord. Perhaps you will pray silently: “Lord, I receive your divine love, your peace, your joy.”” You can repeat the palms up-palms down exercise more than once, if desired. End with a period of silence with your palms up.
- Meditation upon creation: “The heavens do indeed declare the glory of God. (Psalm 19:1) So give your attention to the created order. Look at the trees, really look at them. Take a flower and allow its beauty and symmetry to sink deep into your mind and heart. These are humble acts, to be sure, but sometimes God reaches us profoundly in these simple ways if we will quiet ourselves to listen.
These are only a few of the techniques. A search on the internet for “Christian meditation techniques” will yield a much more varied list. The method does not necessarily matter. The desire, the practice, and the consistency is likely where we will learn to hear from our Father. And as we continue to learn to listen, we will become so familiar with His voice that there will be no mistaking it. Jesus says in John 10:4 that we follow Him because we know His voice. I want to know His voice, and I want to follow Him, so this seems like a great way to grow in that area.
Journal Prompts
Answer only the questions that seem relevant to you today.
Have you ever tried meditation in any form? How did it go?
How can your thoughts be pleasing to God? Are your current thoughts generally God-pleasing?
Try one of the forms of mediation today and write about your experience when you are done.
What are you willing to do to increase your thirst for God?
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