Spiritual Disciplines – Part 3
Meditating on Scripture
by Rebecca Livermore
What do you think of when you hear the word, "meditate"? Do you think of a scantily clad, turban-topped Indian gentleman sitting in the lotus position? Perhaps it brings to mind the fragrance of sandalwood incense wafting through the air. Or maybe even the sound of sitar music playing softly in the background.
Unfortunately, for many of us, the word "meditate" brings to mind images associated with Eastern mysticism. Because of those negative connotations, many Christians avoid doing anything even remotely related to meditation.
Staying away from false religions is a good thing. But in our desire to run from evil, we may also be running away from something scripture commands us to do.
We need to be careful not to confuse the meditation the Scripture talks about with meditation practiced in Eastern religions. A goal of meditation in Eastern/New Age religions is emptying the mind. In contrast, the meditation the Bible speaks of entails filling our mind with God and His Word.
There are three primary Hebrew words translated "meditate" in the Bible. Taking a look at them will help you develop a biblical definition. The first one (hagah) is found in Psalm 1:2 and means to murmur scripture pleasantly to yourself. The second one (higgayown) is found in Ps. 119:14 and means to repeat God’s Word musically. The third one (siychah) is found in Psalm 119:99 and means to reflect quietly with deep devotion, to thoughtfully utter scripture.
In his book, Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life, Donald Whitney defines meditation as, “Deep thinking on the truths and spiritual realities revealed in Scripture for the purposes of understanding, application, and prayer.”
Meditation, like every other discipline, has a purpose. The Bible mentions the following benefits of meditating on Scripture: success and prosperity (Josh. 1:8), fruitfulness (Ps. 1:1-3), wisdom and insight (Ps. 119:98-99), joy (Ps. 63:6), and victory over sin (Ps. 119:11).
Although I've experienced all of the benefits of meditating on scripture mentioned above, for me personally, the most life changing benefit by far has been victory over sin.
For many believers, the struggle against sin is a constant source of frustration. Why do so many people who desire to walk with God struggle so much? I believe that at least a partial reason is that we often hide God's Word in our mind, but fail to allow it to penetrate our hearts.
We hide God's Word in our mind through hearing, reading, studying, and memorizing, and that's good. In fact, in Mt. 22:37 we're told to love God with all of our mind. But, we can't let it stop there. We are also told to love God with all our heart, soul and strength.
In order to obtain victory over sin, we need to allow the Word of God to go from the height of our intellect down to the depths of our hearts. While an intellectual understanding of the Word may convince us of the need to do the right thing, and perhaps even give us the desire to do it, a conviction deep within our hearts is what empowers us to do it.
Meditating on Scripture has helped me to transfer God's Word from my head to my heart. When I read, study, and memorize the Bible, I develop an understanding of God's Word in my mind. When I meditate, I savor His Word in my heart. And, as I savor the Word in my heart, conviction begins to take root, and my heart begins to change. Once a transformation of heart has taken place, doing what is right is no longer a major struggle.
Here are some practical suggestions for incorporating the discipline of meditation into your daily life.
1. Schedule time. In the Bible, we're told to meditate on the Word day and night. I've found it helpful to meditate in the morning on a Scripture that stood out to me in my quiet time, and at night, as I'm drifting off to sleep, on Scripture I've memorized. When I'm faithful to meditate on the Word both in the morning and at night, I find myself meditating on the Word throughout the day as well.
2. Start with prayer. Ask God to help you to focus on Him and His Word. Ask Him to reveal any sin in your life. Confess any revealed sin and ask His forgiveness. Ask Him to move His Word from the height of your intellect down into the depths of your heart.
3. Develop a method. Some find it helpful to sing Scripture that has been set to music. Others benefit from writing the Scripture in their own words. The method I use most often uses the letters A, E, I, O, U. To illustrate this method, I'll use the sentence, "The Lord is my Shepherd." Here's how it works:
A. Ask questions. (In what way is the Lord my Shepherd? What is the function of a Shepherd?)
E. Emphasize words.
THE Lord is my Shepherd. (Not a Lord, but the Lord. There is only one true God!)
The LORD is my Shepherd. (God is in control. He is King of Kings and Lord of Lords.)
The Lord IS my Shepherd. (Not maybe, not might be, not gonna be. Right here, right now, He is my Shepherd.)
The Lord is MY Shepherd. (How personal! He cares for me as an individual.)
The Lord is my SHEPHERD. (He leads, guides and protects me.)
I. Illustrate. If you were going to draw a picture of the verse, what would it include? Ask, "What does this "look" like in real life?"
O. Other scriptures. What else does the Bible say on the topic?
U. Use. How can I use the scripture in my life? Are there any practical applications?
Don't be satisfied with simply understanding God's Word in your mind; savor it in your heart through meditation.
rebecca livermore is a freelance writer from San Angelo, Texas. Her goal is to one day plant churches in India with her husband.