The Lost Art of Meditation

We live in interesting times within an interesting culture. Interesting is not always a bad word, but it sometimes can be. Nearly every culture or moment in time could be described as interesting or unique. Nearly every culture or moment in time has strengths and weaknesses. While this culture and moment in time certainly has plenty of strengths, I can see at least one glaring weakness. We have lost the art of meditation.

We want things now. Right now. Later is too late, and there is far too much time separating right now from later. We are a fast-paced culture. That is how it is and that is how we like it.

However, I have a word of warning for the Christian of this time and culture…

Slow… down… and… take… time… for… God…

Not that God is slow in the way that we understand slowness; however, He is not interested in competing for our attention. In our fast-food society, we have lost the art of Biblical meditation. We want someone else to explain the Bible to us and to do it quickly because we have to be somewhere else, soon.

Even on Sunday mornings, we are a culture who would rather look up to the overhead projection screen (where the preacher had better project the Bible verse that he is talking about) instead of taking the time to locate it in our very own physical, touchable Bible. Then we want the preacher to tell us the revelation he got out of the verse (in short form, please) so that we can move on to another verse and move on with our lives.

But look at what the psalmist says in Psalm 119: 97, “Oh how I love Your law! I meditate on it all day long.” (NIV) The one hundred and nineteenth Psalm is a beautiful Psalm in which the author portrays his understanding of God and salvation. And over and over again he talks about meditating on the word of God.

When is the last time that you just sat down with your Bible, just you and God, and spent time meditating on the word of God, seeking wisdom from the Holy Spirit?

Unfortunately, if we were to write a Psalm today, it would probably read, “Oh how I enjoy your book! I flip through it Sunday after Sunday…”

Meditate on God’s word. Let it infiltrate your heart. Let it change you.