CHRISTIAN
MEDITATION & DEVOTION
This
dynamic article about Christian Meditation by Rhonda Jones will insure
your Christian walk is on the right path!
- Learn God's Vision For Your
Life! -
CHRISTIAN
MEDITATION & DEVOTION
In
this article I will also share with you some tools I use that are
indispensable to me and have made my time with God so much
richer. These are not requirements because in actuality to
meditate or spend time with God, all you really need is a willing
heart
and a quiet space.
Not only will I discuss the practice of daily Christian meditation,
I
want to share with you other activities I include in what I call
my
Morning Devotion that have had a great impact on my life as
well.
I know that each of us have different situations. I don't
have
small children at home anymore but I do have a grandson
that
spends 3 nights a week with me, so I often have to adjust
my
Morning Devotion around his needs, but if there is a will
there
is a way.
I have tried many, many different schedules for my Morning
Devotion
over the years, but the one I am about to share with
you
has been the best one for me. By Morning Devotion I mean
the
time I take each morning before I leave for the job or work
on
my business.
The
days that I skip these activities are usually marked with
anxiety
and frustration. I have reasoned that if I'm too busy for
God
and myself, then I'm just too busy and that busyness and
chaos
usually ends up being a thread throughout my entire day.
If
I give into the busyness I may have lost an opportunity to
receive
God's divine inspiration.
God created us spirit, soul, and body and He doesn't want us to
neglect
any of these areas. We neglect our bodies when we eat
poorly
and don't exercise. We neglect our mind or soul when we
feed
it with mental junk food instead of uplifting literature or
spiritual
delights, and we neglect our spirit when we don't spend
time
with God being restored, renewed, and renovated. So
instead
of thinking just Christian meditation, also think mental,
spiritual,
and physical renewal which I call Morning Devotion, a
morning
of devotion to myself, to all three parts of me.
Therefore, the first thing I like to do when I wake up is some
form
of exercise. I have tried exercising after meditation, after breakfast,
in the evening, and various other times throughout
the
day, but have found that if I don't do it the very first thing,
it's
just not going to happen for me that day.
Once
I get preoccupied with other activities I just can't pull
myself
away, and then once the evening hits, who wants to
exercise,
it's time to relax. So if exercise has been a struggle
for
you as well, try doing it right out of bed. I usually exercise to
DVDs;
my favorites are the Envy Girls Series, 6 Minute Quick
Blast
by Tracy Mallett, PraiseMoves, and Wholly Fit . Some days
I'll
also do a walk, run around the neighborhood. I always try to
end
my 30 minute workout with a relaxing stretch and cool
down.
Afterwards I feel wonderful.
If you are pressed for time, this would be a great time to use
a
guided
Christian meditation. Before starting your cool down,
(Tracy
Smith includes a 6 minute cool down on her DVD), dim the
lights,
light a candle, get a comfy blanket, and put your meditation
CD
in the player. After finishing the stretching exercises, lie on
your
mat, cover your feet with a blanket and play the meditation.
It
will be a refreshing end to a great workout.
Since I usually have a little bit more time, after working out I
have
breakfast. However, while preparing what I'm going to eat
I'll
listen to Christian affirmations, an inspirational CD, or the Bible
on
tape. Not only am I feeding my body nutritious food, I'm also
feeding
my soul. Other great times to listen to affirmations or
other
inspirational recordings is driving to work, taking a shower,
or
putting on make-up (if you're a female). Hey, why not use
technology
as much as you can?
I used to try and do my quiet time before I showered and got
dressed,
but I noticed that doing the last part of my Morning
Devotion
meant I could take all that inspiration into my work time.
Also,
at the end of my time with God, I would list my plans for the
day
asking God for wisdom and guidance. I was able to keep
those
good feelings and God's presence lingering in my heart just
a
little bit longer. For those of you who are leaving for a job that
is
less than optimal or you need some additional inspiration, this
could
be a good thing as well.
Now, let's discuss my actual time with God. Christian meditation
can
take many different forms. I am not a proponent of one size
fits
all programs. I believe that the Holy Spirit speaks, guides, and
corrects us each according to our own unique purpose and
personality.
Therefore, these suggestions are only to broaden the possibilities, but
it's up to you and the Holy Spirit to create a quiet
time
that is purposeful and fulfilling for you.
These are "must haves" for my time with God and I am almost
certain
they would be a blessing to you as well. First, you need a
CD
player and soft angelic music playing in the background. I give
my
subscribers a free meditation collection download that would
work
well. It is something about music that opens our soul to the
spirit
and calms our restlessness.
While the music is playing softly in the background and I'm sitting
in my comfy chair in my prayer room, I light 3 candles and give
honor to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, inviting them into my
quiet time. If you are beginning your quiet time with a heavy heart
or
emotional
baggage please do the exercise found in my article Overcome Negative Emotions
by Casting Every Care on God first.
If you don't purchase anything else for your quiet time with God,
please
get this wonderful daily devotional, "Forty Days to a Closer
Walk
with God" by J. David Muyskens. It is hard to put into words
the
significance of this book to every believer desiring a more
intimate
walk with God. The author, who is a Christian Spiritual
Director and proponent of Centering Prayer (another form of
Christian meditation), uses meditation and the scriptures to grow
a
deeper
awareness of God.
Each of the 40 day passages and exercises along with the meditation practice will open your heart to a relationship with God beyond the superficial and routine. After the 40 days have ended, start again
from
the
beginning. I believe this is a devotional for life. The book teaches
the art of centering prayer where you focus on a word like Father,
Abba, Jesus, peace, love, etc that symbolizes your deep
intention and
desire to dwell in God's presence and love.
40 Days to a Closer Walk with God is not about formulas, but a rich
teaching to help every believer realize God for him or her self. Please
get
it!
Next, I pull out my book, Prayers for a Planetary Pilgrim. This
lovely
book contains a variety of prayers just for meditation, for every
season, and for every day of the week. The prayers begin with an eloquent praise to God as we prepare out heart to rest silently in Him.
It is then followed up with an ending prayer. In addition to this book
of
prayers, I read one chapter each day from Psalms for Praying, An
Invitation to Wholeness. The author's prose invokes a love relationship
with God that literally transforms your spirit.
If you are using the book 40 Days to a Closer Walk with God,
follow
the Prayer Practice at the end of each section. In lieu of using this book, spend time with God in silence or with soft music playing in the background for about 20 minutes or play one of my many guided Christian meditation CDs. These CDs come in a variety of topics and
are very effective in ushering believers into the presence of God. They are particularly helpful if you are new to meditation or have an
extremely
restless mind, as each meditation contains a progressive relaxation
followed by a scriptural narrative.
End your time with God reading a passage of scripture looking for any
word or passage that jumps off the page at you. 40 Days to a Closer
Walk with God suggest several passages to read each day. I usually read
the entire chapter and follow that with writing a few
sentences
or
passages in my notebook or journal of what God is saying to me through
His word.
Lastly, I read my list of daily intentions. It includes about 25
positive statements that I intend on accomplishing each day. For
example, "I intend on having a great day. I intended on being a healing
light to the world. I intend on living by faith. I intend on turning
every care over
to God," etc. These intentions are so powerful because I am speaking aloud what I intend to have and my words cannot return void according to the scriptures. By the end of my time with God, my heart is filled
with an overwhelming peace and joy and I am ready to fulfill my
purpose
for the day.
My morning devotion takes me about 2 hours every morning. That includes
the exercise, breakfast, getting dress, and time with God.
I
generally start about 5 or 5:30 a.m. so I try to go to bed by 9 a.m.
and usually wake up on my own. I feel like these are the best 2
hours
spent for creating a day filled with love, joy, and peace.
You may be thinking, I don't have time to devote 2 hours a day to
myself and I ask you, aren't you worth it? Aren't you worth being
happy,
healthy, and whole? The answer is yes. If my schedule doesn't work for
you, create one that does and make it just as important as
the
time you spend working and doing those things you "have" to do everyday
but are far less rewarding. I hope this article has given you ideas on
how you can incorporate a Morning Devotion, a devotion to your health
and well-being, in your own life.
Go
to Part
III of this series
Rhonda Jones. Author of the Award Winning Website, "The Christian Meditator.com"
Rhonda
Jones is the author of 23 Christian meditation and affirmation Cds.
Visit her award-winning website at: The
Christian Meditator.com.
Sign-up for her Free Spiritual Growth Eseries, 18 Weeks to More Peace, Joy, and Intimacy with God. Copyright Serenity Enterprises.
It Makes Perfect Biblical
Sense - That You Can Have What You Say! As
long as God said it first!
Have you taken the path of
abundant living in Christ Jesus? If not, you need to learn
the fundamentals of
faith and prayer to become all that you were meant to be. If
you don't know how to have faith and you don't understand prayer
principles, you won't be able to have what you say the way Mark 11:24
says that we can do by using the "prayer of faith." You also
won't understand how to receive guidance for God's call upon your life
for your career, ministry or business.
STOP PRAYING WITHOUT
RESULTS. GET PERFECT BIBLICAL SENSE AND YOU'LL BEGIN TO GET
ANSWERED!
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