The world today is so forceful in its efforts to occupy all of the believers’ time, to prevent us from coming to the Lord and to His word to spend time with Him. So, we need to fight for such a time to “meditate” on the Lord as we should; only in this way can we ever have a healthy spiritual life.

Because of its negative association with Eastern religions, Christians may not like to think in terms of “meditating.” However, whereas Eastern meditation leads people to deny their faculties and become passive, and thus opens the door for attacks from the powers of spiritual darkness, the meditation practiced in the Bible is very different; it is in fact the exact opposite of what is practiced in the East. As we see in the Old Testament, rather than being passive, it is something quite active, with the saints exercising themselves to focus on God, His works, and His words.

This kind of meditation is a rich source of spiritual blessing for God’s people; just as it sustained the Old Testament saints in their life with the Lord, so should it sustain us today. This means that, rather than always coming to the Lord to ask Him for this or that, or to care for this or that problem in our lives, it is so good to come to Him sometimes just to appreciate Him and thank Him for all He has done, and to treasure the revelation of Him that we find in His holy word. Surely this kind of appreciation, of “meditating” upon the Lord, will greatly uplift our relationship and life with Him!

Consider the experiences of the saints in the Old Testament.

The Lord told Joshua, just before he led Israel to conquer the Good Land:

“This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it.”
— Joshua 1:8

Here God wanted Joshua to exercise his mind to consider the law God had given to Israel through Moses, and to do so constantly, “day and night.”

At the very end of the Old Testament, when the spiritual life of the nation of Israel was at a very low ebb, the Lord takes note of those who were actively meditating upon His name in fellowship with other believers:

Then those who feared the LORD
spoke to one another,
And the LORD listened and heard them;
So a book of remembrance was written before Him
For those who fear the LORD
And who meditate upon His name.
— Malachi 3:16

However, by far the most mentions of meditation in the Bible are found in the book of Psalms. Often the psalmist would speak of “meditating” upon God Himself and upon His works. It was such meditation in his heart that gave him understanding:

My mouth shall speak wisdom,
And the meditation of my heart shall
give understanding.
— 49:3

Even during the night, as he was “watching” with the Lord overnight, the psalmist remembered the Lord:

When I remember You on my bed,
I meditate on You in the night watches.
— Psalm 63:6

He exercised Himself before the Lord so that, not just what he spoke, but even in his inward meditation, would be pleasing to the Lord:

Let the words of my mouth,
And the meditation of my heart,
Be acceptable in Your sight,
O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.
— Psalm 19:14

Meditating upon God’s work enabled the psalmist to speak of His deeds:

I will also meditate on all Your work,
And speak of Your deeds.
— Psalm 77:12

Such an exercise was so sweet to the psalmist, enabling Him to rejoice in the Lord:

My meditation of Him shall be sweet;
I shall be glad in the LORD.
— Psalm 104:34

Thus, the psalmist loved to meditate and even “muse” upon all the Lord had done, and simply to consider How glorious the Lord is:

I remember the days of old;
I meditate on all Your works;
I muse on the work of Your hands.
— Psalm 143:5

I will meditate on the glorious splendor
of Your majesty,
And on Your wondrous works.
— Psalm 145:5

This kind of “meditation,” of simply taking the time to appreciate God and all He has done, is such an antidote to all the world’s efforts to occupy us and distract us from the Lord! And surely, taking the time to be with the Lord in this way will greatly enrich us in our life with Him.

The verses above deal with meditating upon God Himself and His work. In Psalm 119, we see the matter of meditating upon His word. In fact, more than any other chapter of the Bible, this psalm shows us the proper way to come to the word of God, to treasure what we find there so it can guide us in our walk with the Lord.

That is what we will consider in the next Note in this series.

Sent to our mailing list on
—  8 January 2025 —