Think About What You Are Thinking About

Psalm 77:12 ‘I will meditate also of all thy work, and talk of thy doings.’

Not so long ago the term ‘meditate’ was defined much differently to how it is today. When one considers that word nowadays, images of emptying the mind through mindfulness practices, going away on silent retreat or chanting pop into our head. We might think of meditating as emptying the mind to de-clutter all the information that has gathered therein.

It may come as no surprise then, that this is the exact definition offered by the Oxford online dictionary today. ‘Meditation is the focus of one’s mind for a period of time, in silence or with the aid of chanting, for religious or spiritual purposes or as a method of relaxation.’ Just a few decades ago, the same source stated that mediation was ‘to think about something deeply or to reflect deeply on spiritual matters.’

Instead of thinking deeply on a few things, today’s culture now overloads its mind with so much information that we need a new form of meditation to cope with it – a form that empties our mind. The constant noise in our heads can be quite exhausting and a lot of us don’t particularly like what we hear. That is why so many people are increasingly turning to meditation – they are desperate to rid the voices from their heads.

The soundtrack that goes around incessantly each day in our heads, however, cannot be just left alone. It needs to be critically attended to. We need to really think about what we are thinking about. Dr Martin Lloyd-Jones astutely said, “Have you realized that most of your unhappiness in life is due to the fact that you are listening to yourself instead of talking to yourself? Instead of continuing to be a victim of negative thoughts, we must instead remember what God has done, and what He is doing. We must talk truth back to ourselves.” (1)

Do you actively pursue thinking about what you are thinking about? What is the generic script that runs in your mind?

Philippians 4:8 Finally brethren, whatsoever things are true, honest, just, pure, lovely and of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think upon these things.

There is another form of mediation, which is Biblical meditation. Paul is very pointed about what we are to dwell upon. And it is apparent that these parameters regarding what we are to meditate upon, are found not in the world news, magazines, billboards or on social media, but in the Word of God. That is where our meditation is to be primarily focused.

Biblical meditation allows us to fill our minds with thoughts about a particular subject. In the Bible’s original language, the word meditation means to talk with yourself; to think carefully about something; to take time to really engage with what it means. In short, Biblical meditation is talking with yourself in your heart. It is about engaging deeply with the words of Scripture so that we try to understand the thoughts and feelings of the writer. Richard Baxter, seventeenth-century Puritan succinctly stated that Biblical meditation “stirs the whole soul, not just the mind.” (2)

Are we desperate to have our soul stirred? Or are we racing through our Bible reading time, desperate to attend to something we consider more exciting? There is nothing more important or delightful than thinking deeply about God’s Word.

Psalm 119:72 The law of thy mouth is better unto me than thousands of gold and silver.

The psalmist is not racing through his time of meeting with God in the Word in anticipation of something better. For there is nothing better! He loves God’s law, longs to be immersed in it and has a deep desire to keep it.

Biblical meditation is an opportunity to do more than just study God’s Word. It calls us to slow down, savor each word that God has placed on the page for our benefit and allow those words to be written on the tablet of our heart. We pray about what we have read, consider how it may apply to us and then script each word to memory, so that we can recall them when needed.

We can talk with ourselves about the things of this world, or we can choose to talk with ourselves about the things of God. Biblical meditation writes God’s word on our hearts so that we think about Him; delight in Him; desire to spend time with Him and long for that day when we will be with Him for eternity.

In effect we are all meditating all day long. The question is, on what?

“Heavenly Father, I am so slow to meditate upon what is truly most excellent. Forgive me. Help me to meditate upon your precepts, fix my eyes on your ways, delight in your statutes and never forget your word. Amen.”

(1) Dr Martin Lloyd-Jones, Spiritual Depression, (1965), Harper Collins Publishers

(2) Richard Baxter, The Saint’s Everlasting Rest, (1650), Regent College Publishing.