Bible Text: Psalm 1:2 | Speaker: Bonnie Sala | Series: Guidelines For Living | Blessed is the man…[whose] delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. Psalm 1:2

Have you ever had the experience of picking up a book, hoping to glean some truth or lesson that would help you? Then no sooner had you put down your book than you couldn’t remember a single thing you read. On a certain occasion Jesus told a story, and the point of His story was the way different people respond to the Word of God. In this story Jesus told us that there are times when Satan snatches the Word from our minds. Much of the time we can’t remember what we’ve read — whether it is yesterday’s news or the chapter of Scripture we read this morning — because our minds are focused on our schedules, what we’ve left undone and what we hope to accomplish today.

The end result: more stress and less ability to stay focused on solutions. How do you fight back? You can read out loud. You can take paper and pencil and outline what you have read. You can use a notebook and journal or paraphrase your thoughts. There is another way, however, that can bring great rewards. It is meditation, not meditation for the sake of emptying our minds of the clutter that so often fills our thoughts but filling it up with the Word. Biblical meditation requires discipline and allows you to stay focused on God, allowing what you read to sink into your mind. Donald Gray Barnhouse clarified it by saying, “In prayer we are talking to the Lord; in meditation we are thinking about him.”

This is what the Psalmist had in mind when he talked about the blessings that come to the person whose delight “is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night” (Psalm 1:2). Meditation, in the context of Scripture, means to ponder what you have read, to think about it, to ask yourself, “Is this an example which I need to follow?” “Is there an application to my life?” “Is there something here which demands that I look at it more completely?” This may mean looking up some taking a cross-references in your Bible or historical background on the passage. It’s the difference between savoring a meal verses “wolfing it down” on the go.

Today, something called “mindfulness” is a popular concept. It’s defined as focusing one’s awareness on the present moment, listening to your feelings, thoughts and to your body. When we approach the Word, we should slow ourselves down. But not to look inward, but upward–to mull over what the Holy Spirit might want to impress upon our minds through His Word.

Over a century ago, George Mueller believed in what I’ve just suggested. And who was George Mueller? Mueller was known for his life of faith and deep prayer and for his care for thousands of orphans in England. Here’s Mueller’s account of how he included spiritual meditation in his devotional practice. He wrote, “The first thing I did, after having asked in a few words the Lord’s blessing upon his Word, was to begin to meditate on the Word, searching, as it were, every verse to get a blessing out of it…not for the sake of public ministry, not for preaching, but for obtaining food for my soul.”

Take time today to feed your soul by meditating on God’s Word. You’re not simply adding to our knowledge of Scripture but quiet times of meditation upon Scripture give you the opportunity to hear the Holy Spirit to speak personally to you, to work in your heart. The practice of Scriptural meditation may not change the circumstances of your life, but the Word will change you. There you will find, as the writer of Hebrews put it, “an anchor for the soul, firm and secure” (Hebrews 13:8) and as Peter wrote, “everything you need for life and Godliness” (2 Peter 2:3). I’ve found it to be true and so can you.

Resource reading: Psalm 1:1-3