30 Days of Hope: Day 18 - Discipline of Meditation

I am a relationship girl. I like communication -- the give and the take. I like connecting with people. I like laughing with my family. I like hanging with old friends. I like making new friends. I love being married. I love discipling people. I like discovering things I have in common with people. I love learning about the differences in others. I like having parents I can look up to and rely on. I like loving and being loved.....I love the journey that knowing people unfolds.

In my last post, I talked about how knowing WHO God is, is the place where hope truly springs from, not in the changing of circumstances alone. So since I find such value in relationships, I realized the my relationship with the Father needs to grow in such a way so that I can understand WHO He is more and more each day. The more that I understand Him, the greater my capacity to hope, to dream, to believe in what HE has in store for me.

In my research and study lately, I have been drawn towards meditation as a form of drawing closer to the Lord so I have began to re-read Celebration of Discipline (at the least the portions on meditation). As Christians,
we sometimes shy away from meditation because we think of the Eastern philosophies where you need to empty your mind and/or find peace within yourself. This is what author Richard J. Foster says about Biblical meditation:

"Christian meditation, very simply, is the ability to hear God's voice and obey His word. It is that simple. I wish I could make it more complicated for those who like things difficult. It involved no hidden mysteries, no secret mantras, no mental gymnastics, no esoteric(confidential) flights into the cosmic consciousness. The truth of the matter is that the great God of the universe, the creator of all things desires our fellowship."

So hope is taking me on a journey to re-discover the Father through meditation. David spent MUCH time meditating on the precepts and principles of the Word. His psalms and songs came from that place of meditation and discovery of WHO he belonged to:

Psalm 119:27 - Help me understand the meaning of your commandments,and I will meditate on your wonderful deeds.

Psalm 119:48 - I honor and love your commands.I meditate on your decrees.

Psalm 119:52 - I meditate on your age-old regulations;O Lord, they comfort me.

Psalm 119:117 - Sustain me, and I will be rescued;then I will meditate continually on your decrees.

Psalm 145:5 - I will meditate on your majestic, glorious splendor and your wonderful miracles.

Have any of you utilized the discipline of meditation in your personal walk? What did you learn about the nature of God during meditation? How has meditation on His Word and who He is changed your relationship with Him?