Mediocre Meditator
May the words of my mouth and the meditation Of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.
Psalm 19:14
When I think about meditating, a few things happen. I immediately think of doing something else. I think it’ll be hard. And I worry about doing it right.
The thing is, for the longest time, I’ve had a wrong view of meditation to begin with.
What comes to your mind when meditation is mentioned? It’s a part of the spiritual practice of prayer, but it’s also become more mainstream with other parallel practices like mindfulness and yoga.
I think we usually consider it a conscious clearing of the mind; this seems to be the common (and mostly healthy) practice that a lot of people, regardless of religious or spiritual affiliation will pursue.
And that’s good for what it is.
There’s a deeper meditation that we are called to though. And this is something we actually have had a lot of practice with. Our focus has just been skewed. We easily meditate on fleeting things all day long—bouncing from one podcast to another website to the latest gossip.
But if we’ll look up and dwell on the creation around us, the tiny speck our planet represents in the universe, and the possibility that the Creator calls us to know him personally, it may become easier to pursue him amidst the flurry of our days.
Meditating ON something is to seek it earnestly, to fill our minds with only it. With only Him.
When we actively do this, it edges out the distractions of life. It pushes us away from the tedium and pulls us toward God. It clears our mind up to receive simple truths.
God is love. We are his workmanship. By grace we are saved.
So, let’s stop meditating on mediocre things for a few moments.
God, give me eyes to see how big you are and ears to hear the heavens declaring your glory.