MEDITATING DAY AND NIGHT

I Was Just Thinking About – MEDITATING DAY AND NIGHT.

Two of my favorite passages of Scripture address the subject of meditating. The first is Psalm 1:1-2, “Blessed is the one…whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his Law day and night.” The second is very similar, Joshua 1:8-9, “Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Closely akin to these verses are the one’s pertaining to Prayer. I Thessalonians 5:17, (NIV) “pray continually “and (ESV) “pray without ceasing.”

Having to spend too many days in the Hospital/Medical facility of late has allowed me to reflect on these and other verses and their particular application. I have found it very challenging to “meditate” and to "pray without ceasing.” There are many interruptions as caregivers perform their duties and administer one’s needed medications. Questions are asked and protocols are explained. The way I have resolved these Biblical instructions is to view them in terms of the attitude of the heart and mind amid the necessary activities by which one is surrounded. I can always Pray – “Lord! Right now, I need Your presence and aide.” The Lord is aware of the need so doesn’t require my going into great detail except to express the concern of my heart and mind at that point. The same holds true to meditating on God’s Word. I may not be able to turn to a particular passage but I do have the Spirit bearing witness with my spirit that all of God’s promises are valid for me and are “Yes!” in Jesus Christ. It becomes a matter of claiming the promises of God in Jesus’ name and then implementing Psalm 37:7 to, (ESV) “Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him” and (NLT) “Be still in the presence of the Lord, and wait patiently for him to act.” I came across the idea some years ago that the idea conveys to one the need to “relax in the Lord while waiting for His timing in your behalf.”

John MacArthur wrote about I Thessalonians 5:17, “Prayer is to be a way of life--you're to be continually in an attitude of prayer. It is living in continual God-consciousness, where everything you see and experience becomes a kind of prayer, lived in deep awareness of and surrender to Him.” The same principle applies to meditating. It is a familiarity with God’s Word that in a given situation the Word of God comes to one’s mind and confirms that God is faithful, caring and aware of one’s need or situation. His Word always serves as a lamp to one’s feet and a light for one’s path (Psalm 119:105). These things are to constantly fill one’s heart and spirit. May you find them to be true in and for your life.

Prayerfully – consider these things with me.

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