Romans 12:2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
I have often heard it said “that the Holy Spirit will reveal all things to us”, While the Holy Spirit does reveal things to us, in my experience it has always been after prayer and meditation, thinking is not an optional extra, it is an iatrical part of the process. It is NOT “act first think about it later scenario” but rather allowing the Holy Spirit to guide and lead one’s thinking and be part of the thought process, not distinct from it.
A short while ago, I came across an article that talked of two university researchers who have found that meditation and mindfulness can be very dangerous for our well being. This in contrast is completely opposite to what the advocates of meditation say. The researchers explained that by emptying the mind and setting the mind to think of just one thing resulted in increased stress levels and the unleashing in the mind of deep dark (my words) anxieties that are more harmful.
For me these modern new age reasoning’s have always been a bit wacky. Meditation encourages us to empty our minds, yet Mindfulness encourages to think of one particular thing. Surely this is an oxymoron that takes us round in circles and never really gets us anywhere. Is mindfulness part of the problem in the increased anxieties seen in our young people?
The Hebrew word for meditate is completely opposite to the rubbish spouted by new age gurus and psudo-Buddhists, rather it talks about thinking, about pondering and even speaking it out. It even intimates the idea of just like a cow, chewing the cud. No mindless emptying of the mind but rather a filling up of the mind with the things of God. Romans 10:17 tells us that faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. If I am thinking about and speaking Gods word out loud I am meditating in the way that God wants me to, there is a positive result, I build my faith. Another added bonus is that those deep dark anxieties get filtered out, the bible tells me 2Tim 1:7 that “…God did not give us a spirit of fear but of power and love and a sound mind.”
How does all this ruminating help me as a Christian leader? Well I am convinced that Godly meditation is good for us and is a habit that we need to get into on a daily basis. It is in our mediations that we hear from him and the Holy Spirit guides us to that next best thing that he has in store for us. But I also believe that the very process of Godly meditation brings about a peace and a strength that blasts the feelings of depression and anguish that seeks to prevail itself upon our psyche in this life.