Peace, Be Still

Meditation and Quietude:

     Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.
    Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this: He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun.
      Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; do not fret when men succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes....
      Wait for the Lord and keep his way. He will exalt you to inherit the land; when the wicked are cut off, you will see it.
      I have seen a wicked and ruthless man flourishing like a green tree in its native soil, but soon passed away and was no more; though I looked for him, he could not be found.
      Consider the blameless, observe the upright; there is a future for the man of peace.
      But all sinners will be destroyed; the future of the wicked will be cut off.
      The salvation of the righteous comes from the Lord; he is their stronghold in time of trouble.
      The Lord helps them and delivers them; he delivers them from the wicked and saves them, because they take refuge in him.

There's a quiet place beyond the buzz of the TV and the telephone. And God's saving you a seat.


Defining Moments:
The New Agers came in, started talking about focusing and finding their center ( and stuff like that), and made people think of meditation as some heebie-jeebie, hippie holdover that feels at home on a PBS special, but not on our living room sofas.
     Just because someone misuses God's gift, however, doesn't diminish its importance. Meditation is a much-needed Christian discipline. When you seek a silent place away from the pull of the newspaper or the approaching drumbeats of a work deadline, when you feast on a single verse of the Scripture, letting the Holy Spirit bring to your mind new lessons to learn, new twists on the truth, new insights to gather...you will learn to recognize God's voice and grow in your relationship.
     You don't have to go out looking for demands and distractions. They'll find you-enough to fill every second of your life with noise and activity, yet still leave you restless and dissatisfied. COme quietly before God. Meditate on His word. And enjoy His satisfying rest.

Next up:
Now we're getting somewhere. The next step in growing as a Christian is learning how to keep your life an open book before God, and let nothing come between you.

Quote:
" We must carefully plan solitude. We do not take the spiritual life seriously if we do not set aside some time to be with, and listen to, God." -Henri Nouwen