Tag: Meditation

The Truth

I am grateful that You have sent the Holy Spirit guide us into all truth! (John 16:13)

Psalms 119:15 I will meditate in thy precepts, and have respect unto thy ways.

Psalms 119:99 Thou through thy commandments hast made me wiser than mine enemies: for they [commandments] are ever with me.

Psalms 119:148 Mine eyes prevent [anticipate] the night watches, that I might meditate in thy word.

Psalms 143:5 I remember the days of old; I meditate on all thy works; I muse on the work of thy hands.

Proverbs 4:23 Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.

Proverbs 23:7 For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee.

Selected Psalms and Proverbs

Me: Good morning, Jesus!

Jesus: Good morning, Jon!

Me: Jesus, lately some have been allowed to raise the issue of attempts, by various forces and agencies (such as the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Disinformation Governance Board), to control what is to be sanctioned as “truth”. I recognize the Disinformation Governance Board was officially disbanded in late August last year owing to the recognition that it was a huge political liability for the administration. Still, we have polling results that say more Americans were in favor of such controls in 2021 than they were in 2018. I don’t know it that would still hold today. It seems to me that truth is under Your purview for good reason.

Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

John 14:6

Jesus: That passage highlights that My words about coming to God are true, exclusive (the truth, but by Me), and reliable. If you back up to the beginning of the Gospel of John and the beginning of Genesis, I would like to make a further point about My word.

John 1:1-13, Genesis 1, Colossians 1:15-20, Romans 11:29

The entire creation with all its energy, intricacies, and connections came into being and is maintained in existence by the words of My mouth.

This desire in the heart of man to reserve judgment as to the truth has beguiled mankind from the beginning (Genesis 3), and its deception and consequence will persist unto the end (2 Peter 2). However, I uphold my word, and those who would know the truth may absolutely rely on My promises to help you set your heart on things above (Colossians 3:1).

As Jesus spoke these things, many believed in Him. So He said to the Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, you are truly My disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

John 8:30-32

Isaiah 40:8, Matthew 5:17-20 and Matthew 24:35 tell you that nothing spoken by Me will pass away, for I Am watching over My word to preform it (Jeremiah 1:12).

Me: Thank You Jesus! I love You!

Jesus: You are welcome! I love you!

My graphic depicting some aspects related to the mind, heart, and spirit.

Postscript:
Referring to the graphic above, the function of meditation on the word of God (what is true) is the channel by which the mind is renewed under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. This work has decidedly positive effects on the whole of the soul, improved emotional state, mastery of the will, a clear conscience, strengthened faith, and banished unbelief. A corrupt self-awareness comes into line with the true identity of the believer in Jesus.

Godly meditation is really nothing more than allowing the word of God to form an image in your mind, allowing you to “see” what God is saying to you by His word. It is by this process that we can be truly transformed.

Not to Worry

A teacher at a Bible Study I attended as a young mother threw me a rope one day. She was teaching on the importance of meditation (devotional contemplation and prayer) when she said this, “If you are a worrier, you will be good at meditation, for worry is simply meditating on the wrong things.”

Rhonda Schrock

Nothing to worry about – The Daily Bo Snerdley (thedailybs.com)

I don’t often do this sort of thing, pointing to wisdom not found among the WordPress blogging community. But I was struck by how many practical life-improving nuggets were contained in Rhonda Schrock’s short article. I have quoted one of them above and provided a link to the article.

– Jon

PS. “Bo Snerdley” is a pseudonym used by James Golden, Rush Limbaugh’s long-time call screener. Golden has maintained an incredibly active conservative news and opinion aggregation site. If that is likely to trigger you, you have been forewarned about who is hosting the above link.

Thanksgiving 2022

Oh Lord! When I consider the blessings that come from Your hand, I am overwhelmed at them. Each on its own is completely amazing. The sum of them is beyond words. Praise your Holy Name!

As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: Rooted and built up in him, and [e]stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving.

Colossians 2:6-7

Me: Good morning Jesus!

Jesus: Good morning Jon!

Me: Your power in grace is unknown from any other source, for You are the source of all things and in You all things hold together:

And He is before all things, and by Him all things consist.

Col 1:17

Yet you have called us to walk with You in the power of the Spirit:

Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.

John 14:12

Jesus:

And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.

John 14:16-18

Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.

John 16:13

Me: In our world, Jesus, we have many(!) who claim to voice the truth who use their lips to project anything but the truth.

Jesus: That is one of the high reasons that the truth-revealing work of My Spirit is so critical to you (and to all who will believe).

Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.

1 John 4:1

Me: Jesus, why are so many deceived? They often seem all-in for the narrative of the current propaganda.

Jesus: I will give you two reasons in one passage from Jeremiah:

The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests bear rule by their means; and my people love to have it so: and what will ye do in the end thereof?

Jeremiah 5:31

Do you see what it says about those (false) priests who use the (false) prophets to establish and maintain the power of their rule? This evil is pervasive, from pulpit to elected official, to appointed bureaucrat. Then, to your question of why the lies are so effective, because the people love to have it so. Need I explicitly point out that if your life is full of My Spirit, that He will not passively abide that which is false? He is Holy. There is no falsehood in Him, neither can lies persist where He is given due place, which is an act of the will.

Quench not the Spirit.

1 Thessalonians 5:19

Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.

Ephesians 6:16

Do not doubt that the lies of the enemy are fiery darts. Consider the purpose of fiery darts: to start a consuming blaze to destroy. By setting fire to the resources of the attacked, not only is their substance ruined, but they are diverted from pursuing the battle.

Me: That makes a lot of sense, Jesus! Thank you for leading through these nuggets of Truth! I love You!

Jesus: You are welcome! I love you!

Spiritual River Meditation

And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.
2 In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.
3 And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him:
4 And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads.

Revelation 22

Revelation 22:1

Consider that this flow coming forth from the throne of God is the Holy Spirit.

‘For I will pour out water on the thirsty land
And streams on the dry ground;
I will pour out My Spirit on your offspring
And My blessing on your descendants;

Isaiah 44:3

but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life.”

John 4:14

Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’” But this He spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

John 7:37-39

The leaves of the tree of life are for the healing of the nations. The leaves of a tree drive the take up of moisture through the roots via transpiration. Thus the leaves are filled with the life-giving Spirit. David got a glimpse of this. The Psalms open with it.

1 Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.
2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.
3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.
4 The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away.
5 Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.
6 For the Lord knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.

Psalm 1

Are you a Jesus-believer? Is His name (His infinite nature and limitless love and flawless character) foremost in your mind? Do you need healing from anything? Are you discouraged? Need rescue from just feeling parched in your spirit? Let me encourage you to put your vision to work. Close your physical eyes. In your mind’s eye, see the clear flowing River of God. Let your heart be fully involved and your faith be sure:

See yourself wading into this River of the Spirit. Yield to the feel its crystal-pure current cleansing you – Jesus has paid with His human life to purchase your forgiveness. You need only accept this Gift by faith. Press forward into the flow. Deeper and Deeper. Feel the embrace of the purifying stream. Do not worry that the water should close over your head. The Holy Spirit is the very breath of God. What could be better to fill your lungs? It was His Breath that put life in Adam when he was formed from the dust. Commit to be One with the River, let its Waters be One with you. Enjoy the delight of His presence! Rejoice in the Blessing of His provision for your deepest need!

See His perfect provision as yours! Repeat as desired. No negative side effects! Eternal rewards…