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Christian MeditationRestoring the Lost Art of
Christian Meditation to the Modern Church
Materials by Susan Metoxen, Sole Proprietor of White Buffalo Solutions, a mobile development company based in Hopkins, Minnesota. White Buffalo Solutions has christian meditation apps for smartphones and tablets. See WhiteBuffaloSolutions.com for more information.
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Learning ObjectivesDifferentiate between prayer and Christian meditation
Understand how The Beatles influenced the practice of meditation
Understand what the Bible says about meditation
Understand the health benefits of meditation
Learn some Christian meditation techniques
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I already have daily devotions. Why should I meditate? How is meditation different than prayer?
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Christian Meditation and Prayer
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What is meditation?
meditate
•To train, calm, or empty the mind, often by achieving an altered state, as by focusing on a single object (as in Buddhism and Hinduism)
•To engage in devotional contemplation, especially prayer.
•To think or reflect, especially in a calm and deliberate manner.
What is prayer?
prayer
•The act of making a reverent petition to God, a god, or another object of worship.•An act of communion with God, a god, or another object of worship, such as in devotion, confession, praise, or thanksgiving.
Summarized from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition copyright ©2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Dictionary Definitions
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What is Christian meditation?
Communion
Worshiping
Reflecting
FocusingContemplation
Focused on God and His Word
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What isn’t Christian meditation?
Reciting words without meaning
Emptying the mind
Petitioning God
1 Richard J. Foster, Celebration of Discipline, Harper, San Francisco, 1988, p. 15.
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What do the Beatles have to do with Christian meditation?
In 1968, The Beatles traveled to Rishikesh, India to attend a Transcendental Meditation (TM) seminar hosted by the founder of TM, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi.
This increased the popularity of TM in the US.
For many Christians, the association of meditation with TM led to a fear of meditation as a practice of Hindu or Buddhist faiths.
Photograph by:רוליג
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Meditation in the Bible
The word “meditate” is mentioned 19 times in the Psalms
Example of meditation: Right before Isaac first met Rebecca, “He went out to the field one evening to meditate.” (Genesis 24:63 NIV)
Numerous examples of prophets spending time focused on the Lord, living for extended periods in isolation
Jesus demonstrated a life of contemplation
In the wilderness for 40 days and nights
His night in the Garden of Gethsemane
Gutenberg Bible, Photo by Raul 654
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Health Benefits of Meditation
Respected health professionals accept and encourage meditation
There are articles on meditation on the websites of Mayo Clinic, WebMD, and Psychology Today (see sources at the end of this presentation)
Meditation is recommended for:
Stress ReductionEmotional Well-BeingReducing Negative Emotions
Source: Mayo Clinic: “Meditation: A simple, fast way to reduce stress” http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/meditation/HQ01070
From the Mayo Clinic website:
Some research suggests that meditation may help such conditions as:
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Why should we practice meditation?
Spiritual Benefits: It can deepen our faith and strengthen our prayers
Health Benefits: It has health benefits that we don’t want to pass up
Ready to try it out?
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How to Meditate
Include slow deep breathingInhale through your nose: One, Two, Three, Four
Exhale through your mouth: Five, Six, Seven, Eight
Meditate in a comfortable position. If sitting, sit up straight. You may want to hold your palms up.
Start with short meditations
Meditate on scripture
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Word Focus Meditation
Choose your favorite phrase from the Bible
Start by breathing deeply
Focus on each word
For example:
THE LORD is my shepherd
The Lord IS my shepherd
The Lord is MY shepherd
The Lord is my SHEPHERD
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The Five-Minute Christian Meditation
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Times for meditation
Before a performance evaluation
After a challenging situation with a customer
Before a challenge, like a performance or taking a test
Anytime you identify that your body is in a stress response--you feel anxious, worried, hopeless, heart beating fast
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Next StepsSee all of the White Buffalo Solutions Materials on-line and at the App Store
FiveMinuteChristianMeditation.com (Includes 10 meditation choices.)
ChristianMeditationApp.com (Includes an audio meditation.)
ChristianMeditationResources.com
iTunes.com/whitebuffalosolutions
Android Market
Consider an audio meditation--available on Amazon.com on CD
Check out the World Community of Christian Meditation at wccm.org. (This is a Catholic organization. )
Read The Celebration of Discipline by Richard Foster, available on Amazon.com
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God bless you God bless you in your in your
meditation meditation journey!journey!
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SourcesCelebration of Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth by Richard J. Foster. See Chapter 2 on Christian Meditation.
“Biblical Meditation” by J. Hampton Keathley, III http://bible.org/article/biblical-meditation
Wikipedia: “Meditation” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meditation
Articles on Health Benefits of Meditation
WebMD: “Meditation Heals Body and Mind” by Susan Kuchinskas, http://www.webmd.com/mental-health/features/meditation-heals-body-and-mind
Mayo Clinic: “Meditation: A simple, fast way to reduce stress” http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/meditation/HQ01070
http://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/200304/the-benefits-meditation
Psychology Today: “The Benefits of Meditation” by Colin Allen, http://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/200304/the-benefits-meditation
• Wikipedia: “Research on meditation”, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Research_on_meditation