Prayer as Meditation

Confession: meditation is difficult enough without having mental ADD issues.

Thomas Merton says that meditation can be a descent into "nothingness."  I find this language somewhat dangerous.  I understand that nothingness can be a reflection on death and suffering.  Yet, human meditation as an emptying of the self is dangerous is nothing is there to fill the void.  I am reminded of Jesus' teaching in Luke 11:24-26.

"When an evil spirit comes out of a man, it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. Then it says, 'I will return to the house I left.' When it arrives, it finds the house swept clean and put in order. Then it goes and takes seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that man is worse than the first."

Thus, it is dangerous to empty the mind of soul without intent to fill it with something more beneficial.

To give Merton credit, he does show that the emptiness of the should whould be accompanied with or guided by scripture.  In this way we are filled with divine and holy truth in place of our own emptiness or the world's vanities.  For Christians, this path away from the world and fleshly desire and into spiritual awareness through scripture and the Holy Spirit is a true path to enlightenment, a term that describes a place of God's wisdom and inner transformation.

So, what benefit could meditation be?  Well, it is like exercise.  It takes time to get into the habit, and it gets easier as you work at it.  Eventually, your spirit will crave the adrenaline and energy that comes from the meditative exercise.  There will be incremental changes, and they should be evident in time spent meditating, and also the knowledge of God gained through the intentional focus on his Presence and his Scripture.

Meditate on Psalm 139 again.  "I know the end of my days, how fleeting my life is.  Surely everyone stands as a mere breath.  Surely everyone walks about like a shadow.  Surely everyone is in turmoil for nothing.    They pile up and do not know who will keep it.

And now Lord, what do I wait for?  My hope is in you."

The world is empty.  But our lives are full due to the hope that we have through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  Cherish this thought.  Let everything else--my accomplishments, my activities, my worries, my desires--evaporate in the heat of the day or the cool mists of the night.  Our Lord and God will never change.  I wait for him.  Lord, let your desires transform me.  My hope is in you.

This devotional thought is based on readings from "Devotional Classics: Selected Reading for Individuals and Groups."  Renovare Resources.  Harper, 1993.