A friend of mine who’s been dabbling in several religions and philosophies for many years including Buddhism, but who’s arrived at no particular view of truth (and probably never will) asked me if I meditate, and if so, what does Christian meditation entail…

My answer was that whereas meditation within Buddhism and other philosophies is
designed to dismantle and “free” a person of self, and ultimately the “illusion” of
the world around, meditation in a Christian context is centered squarely on the
object of our faith and hope: God, and his son Jesus Christ.
Instead of “emptying” our minds we fill them with Him, and we do this through and by his
own Holy Spirit, who dwells in all true believers. The Spirit of God, in conjunction with his
written word, enables us to see more of Him, to examine ourselves, and to worship Him in
truth and holiness.
I was thinking about how valuable this kind of medition is in our present world. As we look
around, we see Truth being abandoned and lies embraced and promoted. We see freedom
under threat, even at the hands of some of our own leaders who have only their agenda and promotion in mind. We could, if we allowed ourselves, be in some despair or even
depression. But our antidote is the Spirit of our God, and our fellowship is with God and his Son.
Our victory is secure, our home is with the Creator of heaven and earth: we can’t lose.
So let’s keep our eyes on our great God and Savior. Let’s meditate on him and on his word
daily. Let’s lift ourselves, and so those around us, with the kind of intimacy that lasts, forever.

• DEVOTION