Christian Meditation Podcast

One way to bring your focus to scripture is not with a spirit of fight but with a spirit of peace. A very effective way to do this is to become curious about your current moment. As an example is to observe your thoughts, feelings, and body tension. Another way to help your mind to find its way to scripture is to breathe deeply. Breathe deeply and it will help you relax. If you relax then it will be easier to untie your muscles. Realize that your body has breathed without your focus for years and years. You have literally taken tens of millions of breaths in your life. You don't need to force it now. Only allow you breathing to expand. Feel your breath and you don't have to force yourself to breathe. Your brain is hardwired to relax when it breathes deeply. God has placed this bit of programming into your body. Feel your body relax as you breathe deeply. And as you relax, your body will un-tense. Allow the air to fill your stomach. Slowly filling your lungs with full tummy breaths. As you do that you realize that you can receive peace without conquering the world. We know that we can't conquer the world but we worship a mighty God who has overcome the world. It is in the hollow of his hand that you breathe deeply now. You can feel his calming influence around you now. Keep breathing calmly as I read through the selected scripture. Bible verse for meditation: This scripture is in the gospel of John 14:25-28. NKJV 25 "These things I have spoken to you while being present with you. 26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you. 27 Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. 28 You have heard Me say to you, 'I am going away and coming back to you.' If you loved Me, you would rejoice because I said, 'I am going to the Father,' for My Father is greater than I. Ponder on this meaning. Continue sitting in the grace of God and allow this scripture and God's message to reach your heart. NABRE 25 "These things I have spoken to you while being present with you. 26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you. 27 Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. 28 You have heard Me say to you, 'I am going away and coming back to you.' If you loved Me, you would rejoice because I said, 'I am going to the Father,' for My Father is greater than I. Meditation on scripture / bible verse meditation: What does this scripture mean to you? What stuck out to you as you focused on the scripture? Jesus tells them, and us, that the Father will send the Helper… which is a name for the Holy Spirit. It is through the name of Jesus that it is sent. Only by the mission of Jesus and His holy name can we fully receive the Spirit. The Holy Spirit can be with us especially in our darkest times. He can do many things, and one thing that is highlighted here is that he will bring things to our remembrance. Specifically the words of God. Is there a particular memory that is coming to you now? Don't force it, but realize that this is one thing that the Helper can do. Only after he says that these things will be brought to our remembrance, is when he states that he leaves His peace with us. The peace of God is not a trick. It is not something that we control. A dangerous notion is to perceive meditation, reflection, scripture study, or anything else to fully dictate the spirit of God. It is important to realize that only the sovereignty, or unilateral decisions of God, dictate His spirit. We should therefore not expect that any spiritual practice will yield exactly what we want and when we want it. We should do the things we feel are right, such as spend time in His word and in prayer, then wait and be patient for the time that He determines to. As we readjust our expectations to accept the sovereignty of God, we are more patient for His timing. In this passage, the disciples were sad that he was going away. They should have rejoiced when he said that, but how could they? Without an understanding of the full and true message of Jesus, which they didn't have, why would the rejoice? So it is with us. We do not have a bird's eye objective view of our lives. Sometimes we have an expectation that Jesus will always stay with us, not realizing that this is not His plan. Only by accepting what God's true plan is, will we be able to recognize His Spirit in our lives. Meditation of Prayer: Pray as directed by the Spirit. Ask God for His Spirit to Rest on you. Meditation of God and His Glory / Hesychasm: Imagine the Spirit of God resting on you and bringing things to your remembrance and bringing peace to your heart. Be patient. Me

As we prepare to consider the most important commandments that Jesus declared, let's take a moment to silence the distraction inside of us. Let's begin with a deep and relaxing breath. As you breathe in, feel all your muscles begin to unflex. You notice every part of your body and where it is. You feel where your body touches fabric and furniture. Allow that this moment causes you to create a space of quiet inside of you now. As you let the things of this world to fade, you feel a place of peace be prepared in your heart. Breath deeply now. Allow the things you feel you must do take a back seat to the things that God has in mind for you. Allow this moment to be dedicated to God and allow the desires he has for you, to guide you. Breathe deeply and slowly. Every muscle has begun to relax and is much softer that in was previously. Your mind is calm, your body feels more peaceful and will feel even better as you engage with God's spirit through His word. As I read through the selected Bible verses, keep breathing deeply and allow God's words to penetrate deep into your heart and soul. Bible verse for meditation: Matthew 22:34-40 NIV 34 Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, tested him with this question: 36 "Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" 37 Jesus replied: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." KJV 34 But when the Pharisees had heard that he had put the Sadducees to silence, they were gathered together. 35 Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying, 36 Master, which is the great commandment in the law? 37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets. Meditation on scripture / bible verse meditation: What does this scripture mean to you? What stuck out to you as you focused on the scripture? This scripture is a great gift. We are not left to wonder about any hierarchy of commands. We are asked by Jesus to love God and each other. It is significant when Jesus says that this forms the basis for the Law and the Prophets. These are the Jewish references for the Torah which is the Law of Moses as contained in the first five books Christians refer to as the Old Testament. The Prophets refers to other parts of the Hebrew Bible such as the books of Isaiah and Jeremiah. His intention with this is that all of the Law and guidance given to all the prophets was to teach these two commands. To love God and to Love our fellow human beings. This is not about personal preference. He taught in the Parable of the good Samaritan, that everyone can be considered our neighbor. We cannot allow hate to reside in us. Jesus tells it as a command. Bearing an echo of the Ten Commandments the KJV has it written as 'Thou shalt love'. Myself included. We must love. If we expect to receive the peace of God Jesus teaches that we cannot do so without having love for God above all, and also love for each other. If try and love God but secretly hold hate in our heart, we will miss out on the gift of God's spirit. The more we are able to accept God's love into our hearts and allow him to replace our stony hearts with hearts of flesh, we communicate our love for God and make ourselves open to receive His love. Let's take this moment inside our hearts right now to reject the hate that we have secretly been guarding. Take a deep breath. Imagine that any corners of your heart that are guarding and preserving hate are cleared out. Imagine this blackness being washed away by God's light that rushes in you as you focus on His word and breathe it deeply in. Ponder this command. 'Thou Shalt Love' Meditation of Prayer: Pray as directed by the Spirit. Ask for God's help in developing pure love for Him and all of his creations. Meditation of God and His Glory / Hesychasm: Imagine the love of God penetrating your heart and allowing it to open to all humankind. Meditate and Visualize Positive Change in Your Life: As we have now reflected on the Love of God penetrating their heart, there will likely be things in our lives that can change. I want to to visualize this change. Imagine what specific action you can take that will represent your renewed desire to love everyone. Maybe there is someone specific that you are thinking of. Maybe you are considering your way of interacting with people. Pick something specific that you can do differently now. Fully visualize the interactions that will occur with this insight. Imagine a life full of love. How will you behave differently after implementing this change. Vis

Regardless of what is going on in your life, making time for decompressing and relaxing is amazingly healing and productive. This is our intent at the moment. Become aware of every muscle in your body. Which muscles are flexing? You begin to notice the muscles flexing in your abdomen that are helping you breathe. Perhaps you feel muscles in your back or neck that are tense. Allow the muscles in your ab area slowly draw in a full breath. Breath slow and easy. As you continue to relax you feel your breath getting slower and easier. There is no need to worry about anything at this current moment. The only thing you have to be doing right this moment is to breathe. Everything else is optional. As you place the priority on your breathing you feel your body relax. You feel any worries melt away and be exhaled. Continue breathing slowly and allow this tension to continue to leave. During the rest of this meditation let the focus come on the things of God. Allow all your tensions to leave. Bible verse for meditation: Matt 6:25-30 NRSV 25 "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27 And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? 28 And why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, 29 yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. 30 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? KJV 25 Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? 26 Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? 27 Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? 28 And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: 29 And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? Meditation on scripture / bible verse meditation: What does this scripture mean to you? What stuck out to you as you focused on the scripture? This scripture fits into the broader context of what has been called the Sermon on the mount. It starts in Matt 5-7. There are so many profound quotes in these three chapters that they are highly worth the read. During this week I have shared this scripture multiple times with the hospice patients I have been working with. This is a message that can apply to us at every phase of life. Somehow regardless of how much time we have we seem to find time to live in stresses. We have a tendency to worry. This is true now and it was true of people thousands of years ago. As you breath deeply now, you continue to feel the worry fleeing. If you feel it, realize that this is natural, dont run from the worry, just let it go. Let God take it. As you do this continue to breathe deeply and feel more and more tension leaving. Meditation of Prayer: Pray as directed by the Spirit. Meditation of God and His Glory / Hesychasm: Imagine yourself as a flower growing slowly in a field. Gentle sun lands on your face as the flower gently sways in the breeze. Meditate and Visualize Positive Change in Your Life: Take the message that you feel that God has placed on your heart and let this come into your life. Let this existence become completely real in the theater of your mind. Imagine settings where it is true. Imagine specific scenes with people you know, and specific actions. Imagine the share. Conclusion: Thanks for joining me. I release a new episode every Sunday morning at 1AM Mountain time in the US. If you found this podcast more relaxing than your favorite beverage perhaps consider donating to help me pay the hosting fees. You can do that through Patreon.com/christianmeditationpodcast.com FIND ME ON: iTunes Facebook ChristianMeditationPodcast.com Youtube Twitter Pintrist

Consider your breathing as you allow the distractions of the world to fade. With eyes closed and sitting comfortably, you let go of your need to control everything. As you sit in peace, you hear the gentle waves and your muscles begin to intense. Remember that one goal of approaching God in prayer is to submit to His will. By maintaining a demand for absolute control, many times we end up working against him. As you continue breathing, you can feel your whole body slowing down and becoming more relaxed. The goal is to allow your mind to not fixate on any specific thought and allow the scripture that will be ready to fill your mind. As you breathe, all the tension leaves your body. Imagine that the air that enters you is like clean and pure water. As it slowly rushes over your muscles it cleans them. With each breath, this healing water rushes through your whole body. Pay attention to the messages that God puts into your heart as you hear quoting from, His holy word, the Bible. Bible verse for meditation: John 4:7-10 ESV 7 A woman from Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, "Give me a drink." 8 (For his disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.) 9 The Samaritan woman said to him, "How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman of Samaria?" (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.) 10 Jesus answered her, "If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, 'Give me a drink,' you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water." KJV 7 There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink.8 (For his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat.)9 Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans.10 Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water. Meditation on scripture / bible verse meditation: What does this scripture mean to you? What stuck out to you as you focused on the scripture? This scripture is a powerful one. It explains how Jesus allows the faith of those He ministers to. Jesus waits by the well that Jacob, the Old Testament Prophet, built. When the Israelites came to live in the area, Each tribe settled in a certain region. After years a great division separated them. They separated into two different groups. The southern group was called Judah mainly because it focused on the tribe of Judah. The Northern Kingdom was called Israel. As time went on, the Northern Kingdom (of Israel) was conquered. Many of the Israelites were carried away and those that remained ended up intermarrying with other people. For this, the people of Judah rejected them as inferior because they did not maintain their ethnic purity. This made Jesus's request to the Samaritan woman such a surprise. She seems dismissive of Jesus and expresses distrust and some people interpret her response as a mocking of Jesus. One thing is clear. After Jesus told her about, what would have been an adulterous relationship, she believed Jesus. His goal was not to shame her but to motivate her to change and become a powerful missionary to help others. Jesus shows his interest in breaking down false barriers between people. He wants us to abandon biases and personal judgments in order to receive his healing living water. This living water is available only through Jesus. What are things you can do in your life to abandon your own biases and replace them with the living water of Jesus Christ? Meditation of Prayer: Pray as directed by the Spirit. I invite you to ask God for forgiveness and then trust Him. I invite you to pray for his loving spirit to wash away your shame. Meditation of God and His Glory / Hesychasm: Imagine sitting in the love of God as it pours over you as you are real about your sin. Meditate and Visualize Positive Change in Your Life: I want to share something with you that I hope you don't find too morbid. In my work in hospice, I talk to people who, many times, know that they are about to die. They begin to reflect their life and it finally sets in that this life is short. I consider it a blessing to have spent so much time in this place. For better of for worse, this is the only life that you will have. This is the life that is teaching you what you really need to learn. A major part of that message is learning how to be reliant on God. As you realize that it is only through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ that we can overcome this world, you begin to truly connect with a new and eternal hope. Imagine that, with God's mercy, you can change this life that you have. With the Spirit of God, you have EVERYTHING you need to change and become the best version of yourself. Visualize how this message can play out in YOUR life. Conclusion: Thanks for joining me. I release

Intro: I find it an important distinction to separate the ideas of shame and humbly admitting our sin before God. Take a moment and reflect on the purpose God has in this scripture. Why does Jesus tell this story? Not only why does he tell it, but why does he want us to acknowledge our sinful nature? How is this feeling different from shame? Is it possible to reject shame while still embracing humility before God? In my work, it seems that people who experience shame fatigue often misinterpret messages like this, then go on to see God as a being who desires us to feel immense shame. I would argue that shame is the adversary's counterfeit for a grieved conscience. Outline: Relaxation, Reading, Meditation, Prayer, Contemplation, Visualization I invite you to get comfortable for 20 minutes, without driving or doing chores, but focusing exclusively on the message God has for you. If you feel safe to do so, close your eyes. The goal of this relaxation is to remove distractions to allow us to focus on God's word. Guided Relaxation / Guided Meditation: I have found that it is easiest to relax not by blocking out all of your senses but by being allowing them to just be as you prepare your heart for a fast from the attention of the world. Listen to the sounds around you. Listen to the soothing sounds of the sea as the waves gently churn. As you become more aware of this moment you allow it to fade gently. You notice your breathing gently expanding. Air slowly fills your stomach as you breathe all the way from your diaphragm. Imagine your stomach is a large balloon filling with air. Gently breathe in with me as I count. For five seconds breath in. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. Then pause. Breath out, 2, 3, 4, 5. Continue breathing slowly. As you breathe slowly you feel your muscles relax and unflex. With each passing breath, you relax more and more prepared to receive a message from the Bible, from God directly. As I read through this scripture keep your heart, mind, and ears open to God's message to you. Bible verse for meditation: Luke 18:10-14 KJV 10 Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. 11 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. 12 I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess. 13 And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. 14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted. Luke 18:10-14 NIV 10 "Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: 'God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.' 13 "But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, 'God, have mercy on me, a sinner.' 14 "I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted." Meditation on scripture / bible verse meditation: What stood out in this scripture? Who do you identify with in this scripture? What can you learn from this scripture? I find it an important distinction to separate the ideas of shame and humbly admitting our sin before God. Take a moment and reflect on the purpose God has in this scripture. Why does Jesus tell this story? Not only why does he tell it, but why does he want us to acknowledge our sinful nature? How is this feeling different from shame? Is it possible to reject shame while still embracing humility before God? In my work, it seems that people who experience shame fatigue often misinterpret messages like this, then go on to see God as a being who desires us to feel immense shame. I would argue that shame is the adversary's counterfeit for a grieved conscience. Open yourself up to the idea that your sin is egregious yet at the same time, through the infinite Love of God, He knows exactly how to handle that. I firmly feel that as we learn to engage in our guilt in a healthy way, that our artificial and inflated shame will decrease in most situations. Let God extend his great mercy to you. If you would like a deeper reflection on this, see episode 9 that discusses Isaiah 53. With His stripes, we are healed. Also refer back to the last episode about how we can stop deceiving ourselves. Continue breathing deeply as you acknowledge your sin before God. Allow his love to penetrate your sin. Make your heart ready for him to replace your stony heart with a heart of flesh. Meditation of Prayer: Pray as directed by the Spirit. I invite you to ask

Christians often experience conflict about anger. In, some ways we realize that is a natural human response. In other ways, we realize the damaging consequences of it. Some people wonder if Jesus really felt anger as he drove the moneychangers out of the temple, and if so, wouldn't that be a sin. Sometimes we try and justify our anger using this example. The greatest danger of our anger is when it affects our relationships with others. Ultimately though when we are thoughtful and honest we realize that righteous anger probably represents a small portion of our anger if at all. This meditation will focus on how to reconcile the anger we feel, and hopefully, learn a kind of discipline to make anger a less frequent visitor in our lives. Intro: This meditation will follow an ancient Christian model called Lectio Divina which originated in the 6th century AD. It is meant to be used all week long. Outline: Relaxation, Reading, Meditation, Prayer, Contemplation, Visualization I invite you to get comfortable for 20 minutes, without driving or doing chores, but focusing exclusively on the message God has for you. If you feel safe to do so, close your eyes. The goal of this relaxation is to remove distractions to allow us to focus on God's word. Guided Relaxation / Guided Meditation: Observe your body. Are you currently carrying tension? What does that tension feel like? Is it pent up anger, perhaps it's anxiety or fear? Gently allow air to come into your body and fill your stomach. Breathe slowly all the way down to your diaphragm. The experience of tension does not need to rule you. You notice that as you continue to focus on slowing your breath that you release this tension as you go. Your body receives the message. Imagine As you continue breathing deeply, leave your heart open to receive this message of scripture. Bible verse for meditation: James 4:1-3 - KJV 1 From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members? 2 Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. 3 Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts. James 4:1-3 - NIV 1 What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don't they come from your desires that battle within you? 2 You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God. 3 When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures. Meditation on scripture / bible verse meditation: The cause of much of our contention is rooted in our desires, lusts, and expectations. Again I want to be clear that this is not universal. Think about a time when you were Angry? Was it related to desires lusts and expectations? Now breathe deeply and release that anger energy. Let the battle of desire within you subside. What is the solution recommended by scripture? We do not have because we don't ask God. If we have the wrong motive, we will not receive. As we learn to let go of that, we find greater peace. Meditation of Prayer: Pray as directed by the Spirit. Meditation of God and His Glory / Hesychasm: Imagine what it would feel like to give up worldly desire. Meditate and Visualize Positive Change in Your Life: Take the message that you gained from God's word as you continue to allow his breath cleanse you. What message did you get from this scripture? Remember that you can use your own experience, reason, but more importantly scripture and the Spirit of God to bounce this idea off. I invite you to imagine how this message would play out in your life. What behaviors would change if you lived your life, with the knowledge that this thing is true. Imagine at least one specific thing that you could do today or tomorrow based on this message. Fully visualize this. What would it look like in your life? What positive things could you do, or what would happen around you, knowing that this thing was true? Visualize the change Conclusion: Thanks for joining me. I release a new episode every Sunday morning at 1AM Mountain time in the US. You can help someone feel the peace you experienced here by sharing this podcast with those you care about. You can get more information about my podcast by visiting my website ChristianMeditationPodcast.com. You can also send me a message through the site. I would love to hear what your experience is with my podcast. REVIEW: A friend of mine Michael, who runs a podcast called Diet Science commented on my Facebook page Facebook.com/christianmeditationpodcast the following: Jared, this is awesome! Great Job and I love the music in the background. Nicely done! Thanks, Michael. If you haven't heard Michael's podcast I would highly recommend it. He interviews an expert on various aspects of nutrition and health. It's a great podcast. If you would like to look me

This week, much of the United States was riveted by the appearance of a total solar eclipse. If you are fatigued on this topic please be patient with me as I feel it is relevant. I drove up to Idaho with my two kids, unfortunately my wife had to work. As the eclipse began, my kids were quite complacent. Despite the fact that other people had told them of how amazing it would be, they were bored. Ii tried to explain why it was worth the long drive and sleeping in our vehicle but they didn't grasp the vision. The moment the sun was totally eclipsed was completely stunning to see in person. My children cheered and threw their hands in the air. There is no way that I could have understood it without seeing it. I could stare directly at the sun and see it glowing with a celestial brilliance, but with my own eyes. The glowing beams that surrounded the eclipsed sun was surreal and, at least for me, extremely spiritual. I imagined what it would be like to be able to see Jesus on the mount of transfiguration. I thought of the words of Peter "it is good to be here." (Luke 9:33) As the smalles part of the sun broke around the edge of the moono I could see it glisten with perfect clarity. As the bright streams of light broke forth as it came out, I didn't want to look away. I imagined that this was, on a small scale, like wanting to look directly upon the glory of God but wanting to. As we go through this meditation, perhaps one thing you could reflect on is what Joy will fill our hearts as we are received into his glory through Jesus Christ our Savior and why Jesus says this to Nathaniel. Relaxation is often best to be begun with introspection. As you sit comfortably, look inside of your body. What tensions are there in you, and where are they? On the positive side, where is there a gleam of God's glory poking through allowing its light to be shown? Allow your breathing to slow. Be very minful about the air comming in. You are preparing your heart to read the words that God spoke through the spirit. Gently fill your stomach with air. As you breath deeply, you feel your body relaxing. Luke 9:33 And it came to pass, as they departed from him, Peter said unto Jesus, Master, it is good for us to be here: and let us make three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias: not knowing what he said. Continue to breath deeply as I read these verses of the bible for meditation. Imagine what message stands out to you as you listen to them. Bible verse for meditation: John 1:48-51 - KJV The calling of Nathanael 48 Nathanael saith unto him, Whence knowest thou me? Jesus answered and said unto him, Before that Philip called thee, when thou wast under the fig tree, I saw thee.49 Nathanael answered and saith unto him, Rabbi, thou art the Son of God; thou art the King of Israel.50 Jesus answered and said unto him, Because I said unto thee, I saw thee under the fig tree, believest thou? thou shalt see greater things than these.51 And he saith unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Hereafter ye shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man. Reflect on that message. As I read from another version look for similarities and differences. See how this contributes to the message you heard the first time. John 1:48-51 - ESV 48 Nathanael said to him, "How do you know me?" Jesus answered him, "Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you." 49 Nathanael answered him, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!" 50 Jesus answered him, "Because I said to you, 'I saw you under the fig tree,' do you believe? You will see greater things than these." 51 And he said to him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man. Meditation on scripture / bible verse for meditation: As you were hearing this verse, what message stuck out to you? Continue to remain relaxed and allow yourself to focus on the message you got from scripture. This describes when Jesus called Nathaniel to be one of his primary disciples. Nathanial is not naive. When Philip tells him about Jesus he rebuts "can any good thing come from Nazareth?" He knows the prophecies. Phillips response is a powerful one. Come and see. The same option is available to each of us. Come and see. Consider what it teaches us as Jesus praises Nathaniel. What is he praised for? He is a true Israelite, but why? Because there is no guile or deceit in him. He has no desire to pretend to be something he isn't. As Jesus talks of seeing him under the fig tree we don't have much of a backstory here but this is extremely meaningful to Nathaniel. As Nathaniel was living his life, perhaps in devotion to God under a fig tree, Jesus was aware of him. Now that he is called by Jesus he will see greater things. The heavens opened. What would it look like for the heavens to be open? Spend some time on that thought for a second. As the heavens op

Fear is a common emotion. It is inevitable that we will all feel it. The bravest people are the one's that are able to experience the feeling of fear and still charge forward. It is false to suppose that people who do amazing and challenging things must be free of the debilitating feeling of fear. Many of the things we do, sometimes more importantly, don't do are as a result of fear. As we go through this meditation, I would like you to consider how fear is stopping your progress. Outline: Relaxation, Reading, Meditation, Prayer, Contemplation, Visualization I invite you to get comfortable for 20 minutes, without driving or doing chores, but focusing exclusively on the message God has for you. If you feel safe to do so, close your eyes. Guided Relaxation / Guided Meditation: As you sit and listen to the sound of waves take a slow and intentional breath. Allow your muscles to unflex. Continue deep breaths. Allow your mind to calm. Imagine that a single small candle is burning in the middle of your chest. With each slow and deep breath in you gently fan that flame allowing it to grow. As you place your focus on this flame it feels like pure love. You can't help but to feel this love. It starts to grow. Imagine all the tension in your body burns in this fire. As your attention rests on this small yet growing flame, you realize that it is the gift of God to you. In the rest of this meditation I invite you to think about what that gift is. As you continue breathing deeply, leave your heart open to receive this message of scripture. Bible verse for meditation: 2 Timothy 1:6-8 ESV 6 For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands, 7 for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control. 8 Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God, Meditation on scripture / bible verse meditation: What stood out to you in this scripture? Consider what is the gift of God? How is the fanning of this flame related to overcoming fear? There is an intellectual meaning to this gift as it relates to the laying on of hands. The most meaningful experience of the early disciples is that of deep communion with God, as it is for us. Christians have interpreted this laying on of hands differently, and what is most striking is that it is always to allow God's power to be more fully visible in this world. As you ponder how this gift plays out in your life, imagine how you can apply it to overcome your deepest fear. What is your deepest fear. Take a slow and easy breath as you fan the flame of the gift of God in you, and imagine what this fear is. For many people it is a fear of being unloved, or lonely. Many people fear not being important, or not being able to survive the situations that they are in. Whatever your fear is, don't focus on a feeling of judgement for having it. Release that judgement. Let Jesus take that. All judgement is given to the Son. What I invite you to consider is how this fear can melt away as you fan the flame of the gift of God. As you allow his power and love to fill your being, you will be able to gain self control. You can overcome any fear, any worry, any anxiety, any panic. Allow the reality of your situation to remain unchanged as you walk hand in hand with the Holy Spirit. Don't fear the suffering that results for living well. Suffer well and let God be with you in that suffering. As you do you will no longer fear it. Meditation of Prayer: Pray as directed by the Spirit. Meditation of God and His Glory / Hesychasm: Imagine this gift as it burns in your chest. Open yourself up to feel the love of God. Meditate and Visualize Positive Change in Your Life: Take the message that you gained from God's word as you continue to allow his breath cleanse you. What message did you get from this scripture? Remember that you can use your own experience, reason, but more importantly scripture and the Spirit of God to bounce this idea off. I invite you to imagine how this message would play out in your life. What behaviors would change if you lived your life, with the knowledge that this thing is true. Imagine at least one specific thing that you could do today or tomorrow based on this message. Fully visualize this. What would it look like in your life? What positive things could you do, or what would happen around you, knowing that this thing was true? Visualize the change Conclusion: Thanks for joining me. I release a new episode every Sunday morning at 1AM Mountain time in the US. You can help someone feel the peace you experienced here by sharing this podcast with those you care about. Facebook.com/ChristianMeditationPodcast I think that was awesome. What a nice unique way to combine the study of the Scriptures with a kind of meditation atmosphere conducive to deeper thought about the Scriptures you read, and the insightful background offe

Although not universally positive, children possess so many admirable traits. When I watch my kids pray for others, forgive after disagreements, and most of all when I see their faith, I am moved. Children have an amazing capacity to love. As we learn to be in communion with the spirit of God, we are able to absorb and integrate the most positive traits of Children, while turning away from the negative. In this meditation we are going to spend some time thinking about this, and how it applies to our life journey as we seek to live by the word of God. Outline: Relaxation, Reading, Meditation, Prayer, Contemplation, Visualization I invite you to get comfortable for 20 minutes, without driving or doing chores, but focusing exclusively on the message God has for you. If you feel safe to do so, close your eyes. Guided Relaxation / Guided Meditation: How to relax and how to meditate: Take stock of your breathing first. Instead of trying to force the world out, become a curious observer. Allow your focus to become soft. If you notice your mind wander bring it back to your breath. Allow your muscles to unflex. Breath deeply and allow the air to gently sweep over you. Imagine that the inside of your body is becoming full of air. With each passing breath you more it fills you deeper. All of the tension drains out of you as you feel your attention resting on this air coming in. Through the rest of this meditation let your attention gently rest on the message you find in scripture. As I read the following scripture continue to relax and breath deeply. Allow your attention to focus on whatever message you see in this following scripture. Bible verse for meditation: Matt 18:1-4 NRSV 1 At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, "Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?" 2 He called a child, whom he put among them, 3 and said, "Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Whoever becomes humble like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Meditation on scripture / bible verse meditation: What is the thing that stood out to you most in this scripture? What does this message mean to you? What is the most important part of you? What is the most important aspect of you? This scripture gives us a clue as to what parts of you God things are most important. Somewhere deep inside of you there is the same person that was in your body when you were a child. In God's eyes you are still a child. He invites us continually to be with him. His constant message is "I want to be with you, do you want to be with me?" The things He loves and admires the most about you are wrapped up in the child part of your personality. When is the last time that you have lived in this kind of innocence? Let the darkness of cynicism lift from your mind as you see yourself running and playing before the presence of the Lord. Imagine that all the negativity that surrounds your heart disappears. Take the lessons you have learned as you have matured as ask yourself: "Have they brought me closer to God or not?" We learn how to be more critical, more secretive, put on more of a false persona. We learn how to give up our childish ways to avoid being seen as a child to the world. How can you be more like the little child that Jesus put before his disciples? How can you be more like the little child that Jesus put before his disciples? Lets pray to God and engage this question. As you take another deep breath continue allowing the muscles in your body to loosen, gently and continually bringing your mind back to the message of this scripture. Meditation of Prayer: Pray as directed by the Spirit. Meditation of God and His Glory / Hesychasm As you start to sit in the feeling of the innocence of a child, Imagine the Love that God pours into you. Sit silently with this feeling. Meditate and Visualize Positive Change in Your Life: Take the message that you gained from God's word as you continue to allow his breath cleanse you. What message did you get from this scripture? Remember that you can use your own experience, reason, but more importantly scripture and the Spirit of God to bounce this idea off. I invite you to imagine how this message would play out in your life. What behaviors would change if you lived your life, with the knowledge that this thing is true. Imagine at least one specific thing that you could do today or tomorrow based on this message. Fully visualize this. What would it look like in your life? What positive things could you do, or what would happen around you, knowing that this thing was true? Visualize the change Conclusion: Thanks for joining me. I release a new episode every Sunday morning at 1AM Mountain time in the US. If you found this message useful please share it with people you care about. You literally can contribute to someone feeling more peace today. I've been thinking about how to more fully engage with you all, as my listeners. One way that I f

Have you ever tried to explain a spiritual experience to someone else? It's hard. Our language is not powerful enough or perhaps not precise enough to do it justice. Despite this deficiency, those who have experienced it, cannot deny the reality of this experience. It is the core of the scriptures, human experience with God. What is more amazing is that the Holy Spirit is offered to us. We can be born of His spirit, His spirit of peace. Now lets prepare our hearts and minds to listen to His word. Outline of the Meditation. I invite you to get comfortable for 20 minutes, without driving or doing chores, but focusing exclusively on the message God has for you. If you feel safe to do so, close your eyes. Guided Relaxation / Guided Meditation: How to relax and how to meditate: Begin by observing how quiet your body is. Move until you are comfortable and don't need to move in the slightest bit. This time is an opportunity for you to fast from the constant inputs that are coming into your life. Right now there is no input, there is nothing coming in, but air. And the thing that is leaving is all tension. Leaving only a perfectly relaxed body behind. Bring any distracted thought back to the idea of fresh air coming in. Continue breathing deeply and what you will notice is that your body will gently release that tension. Imagine all the weight of your body begins to slowly melt away As you continue to take in breaths you become lighter and lighter. All the heavy tension of your body leaks out of you as you breath deeply. As you continue to breath you find yourself weightless in your chair. Imagine your body slowly floating above your chair. As you imagine yourself floating, your body is as weightless and loose as a cloud. With each breath that you let in your body you feel the gentle cloudiness sooth any spots that felt tense until they too are light as air. Keep breathing deeply as you listen to this scripture. While staying relaxed, listen carefully and let the message penetrate your soul. Bible verse for meditation: The reading will be from John 3:5-8 From the ESV 5 Jesus answered, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 What is born of flesh is flesh and what is born of spirit is spirit. 7 Do not be amazed that I told you, 'You must be born from above.' 8 The wind blows where it wills, and you can hear the sound it makes, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes; so it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit." Meditation on scripture / bible verse meditation: Some people go to great lengths to justify their faith in terms of academic means. This is a noble venture but ultimately the only way that we can truly gain this witness is by having an experience with the Holy Spirit. I want to be very careful to not say that we can demand this from God. This is not something that we deserve. Despite this, God makes it very clear that he wants us to approach him. As David says in Psalm 51:17 "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise." As we approach him true humbly, one of the responses is an outpouring of His spirit. God's spirit can bring peace. In my experience, God pours out his spirit more abundantly as we consistently focus on preparing our minds. Meditation of Prayer: Pray as directed by the Spirit. Meditation of God and His Glory / Hesychasm Sit in silence before the Lord and Foster in you pure Awe, demonstrating the purest gratitude you know how to for the forgiveness of your sins. Meditate and Visualize Positive Change in Your Life: Imagine the message you got from scripture today. How can that be applied to your life? Visualize that in as much detail as possible. Take these ideas and share them with people you trust in your life, compare to other scriptures to provide checks and balances. Trust the spirit of the Lord and He will direct you for Good. Conclusion: I release a new episode every Sunday morning at 1AM Mountain time I would appreciate your help to share this message with anyone. FIND ME ON: iTunes ChristianMeditationPodcast.com Youtube Twitter Pintrist

What do you have that is important? What things do you hold of others that is valuable? Maybe you know someone intimately well. Maybe you know the full details of someone's life. That knowledge is a kind of sacred trust. What do you know from God that is sacred to you. So sacred that you would not share it? Do you have things that are so sacred that you must share them? In what contexts do you share things? Are you worthy of the trust people put in you? In our highly technical world we know so little about each other in some ways and in other ways, perfect strangers know more about us that we could imagine. In this meditation we will ponder how to be better stewards of the that with which we have been entrusted and to treat knowledge about each other with a sacred perspective. I invite you to get comfortable for 20 minutes, without driving or doing chores, but focusing exclusively on the message. Guided Relaxation / Guided Meditation: How to relax and how to meditate: Begin by observing how quiet your body is. Move until you are comfortable and don't need to move in the slightest bit. This time is an opportunity for you to fast from the constant inputs that are coming into your life. Right now there is no input, there is nothing coming in, but air. And the thing that is leaving is all tension. Leaving only a perfectly relaxed body behind. Bring any distracted thought back to the idea of fresh air coming in. Continue breathing deeply and what you will notice is that your body will gently release that tension. Imagine all the weight of your body begins to slowly melt away As you continue to take in breaths you become lighter and lighter. All the heavy tension of your body leaks out of you as you breath deeply. As you continue to breath you find yourself weightless in your chair. Imagine your body slowly floating above your chair. As you imagine yourself floating, your body is as weightless and loose as a cloud. With each breath that you let in your body you feel the gentle cloudiness sooth any spots that felt tense until they too are light as air. Keep breathing deeply as you listen to this scripture. While staying relaxed, listen carefully and let the message penetrate your soul. Bible verse for meditation: The reading will be from 1 Timothy 6:17-21 From the NABRE New American Bible Revised Edition 17 Tell the rich in the present age not to be proud and not to rely on so uncertain a thing as wealth but rather on God, who richly provides us with all things for our enjoyment. 18 Tell them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous, ready to share, 19 thus accumulating as treasure a good foundation for the future, so as to win the life that is true life. 20 O Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you. Avoid profane babbling and the absurdities of so-called knowledge. 21 By professing it, some people have deviated from the faith. Grace be with all of you. Meditation on scripture / bible verse meditation: What Message did you receive from this scripture? What have have you been entrusted with? What do you value most in this world? What do you hold of others that they most value? What do you hold of God's that is of value? How are you planning on using or guarding that? Share that with God. In the silence of these moments you feel the weight of loyalty, born out of love. As we love each other we want the best for each other. Guard the sacred trust that you have been entrusted with. Honor it more precious than Gold. Many people claim that money is the root of all evil. That is not true. Paul states earlier in this letter that it is the love of money that is the root of all evil. Do you love the gain of this world more than you honor your sacred trust. I promise you that as you more carefully honor that with which you have been entrusted, the more God will guide you in guide you in how to use it, according to His will. Meditation of Prayer: Pray as directed by the Spirit. Meditation of God and His Glory / Hesychasm Sit in silence before the Lord and Foster in you pure Awe, demonstrating the purest gratitude you know how to for the forgiveness of your sins. Meditate and Visualize Positive Change in Your Life: Imagine the message you got from scripture today. How can that be applied to your life? Visualize that in as much detail as possible. Take these ideas and share them with people you trust in your life, compare to other scriptures to provide checks and balances. Trust the spirit of the Lord and He will direct you for Good. Conclusion: Thank you for joining me today. We will reach well over 1,500 downloads for this month. Thank you for your support with that. I want to share with you something that I found profound. I recently upgraded my stats package with my media hosting. Now I am able to see geographical information about the episodes. I am still nerding out about the results. I discovered that there are downloads all over the US. This podcast has been downloaded in 32 states or territories of th

The great cry of our generation is to reduce the anxiety that overwhelms so many of us. Many people try and find a mechanical solution. They think that a set procedure can alleviate that. Many people worry about the future or ruminate on things they have done wrong. Although God has placed in us an amazing power within ourselves to find through practices like meditation, without the Help of God we can't fully. In this episode we will go over the real source of our peace and how to tap into it. Get into a place where you can sit comfortably for 20 minutes. I recommend not driving or doing chores so you can focus totally on the message God and if there is something wrong in your body I recommend you talk to a medical person to let the miracle of medicine help you as much as it can. Intro: As you get comfortable I want to say Oh my goodness my friends, I am overwhelmed by the spike in listenership. Just to be totally transparent, this month we are experiencing a 1000% growth. That is because many of you share it with people you care about. I've been watching the download numbers and often times I see little spikes of 10 or 20 and I know just shared it. We had over 300 downloads of the last podcast. With you help, my goal is to reach 1000 downloads in the month of July and 10,000 downloads in the first year. I can only do that with your help, and it costs you nothing to share. Even though I am in grad school… again I am so happy to produce this podcast. My only compensation for putting this podcast out is to know that people are benefiting from it, so please pay it forward and share this podcast on social media and teach other people how to subscribe. Thank you so much for letting me into your home to whisper in your ear. I take that trust seriously. Guided Relaxation / Guided Meditation: If you feel comfortable doing so, feel free to close your eyes. First things first as you sit comfortably in your chair, take inventory of your body. What sensations do you detect? what is your breathing doing? Is it fast? or is it nice and slow and even? Spend some time now and notice it. For this first part, if your notice your mind wandering gently redirect it back to your breathing. As you scan your body, try to notice areas that feel calm, spend time enjoying that part of the body that God has given you. If there are any areas of your body that feel tense, spend a moment to notice what that feels like. Now try and intentionally unflex them. Continue breathing deeply and what you will notice is that your body will gently release that tension. Imagine all the weight of your body begins to slowly melt away As you continue to take in breaths you become lighter and lighter. All the heavy tension of your body leaks out of you as you breath deeply. As you continue to breath you find yourself weightless in your chair. Imagine your body slowly floating above your chair. As you imagine yourself floating, your body is as weightless and loose as a cloud. With each breath that you let in your body you feel the gentle cloudiness sooth any spots that felt tense until they too are light as air. Keep breathing deeply as you listen to this scripture. While staying relaxed, listen carefully and let the message penetrate your soul. This reading will be Isaiah 53:4-6. The reading will be from the KJV. Bible verse for meditation: 4 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. 5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. 6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. Meditation on scripture / bible verse meditation: What Message did you receive from this passage? This is one of a the 4 servant songs in the book of Isaiah. The other servant songs identify the servant as the people of Israel, or God's covenant people. This one is not specified and scholars have argued the identity of this servant. As Christians it is very difficult to read this and not imagine Jesus Christ as we hear this. He bore our grief. He was stricken and afflicted. He carried our sorrow. Many times as Christians we don't realize the full gravity of this phrase. Jesus Christ quite literally carries our griefs and sorrows. Jesus helps with far more than only sin. His desire is to save us from all suffering as we learn to trust on Him and grow in Him. It is through His stripes we are healed. Despite this, we have gone astray. As we saw in last episode despite our going astray, Jesus considers us a gift to him. Despite the cost. I invite you to open your heart to Jesus. Let Him see your pain, your grief, your loss. Sit open to him without any need to explain yourself, because he understands you. Open up your sin to him also. As you do this you realize that any pain and guilt from this sin is for one reaso

How can we find more peace with God? It is unity with God and the power of relaxation he created in our bodies that can help us feel peace. Through His spirit we can feel calm and reduce stress, worry, and anxiety. The most useful meditation that I have had is when I feel that all formal barriers are dropped between me and God. Introduction: Get comfortable and take some time. Dedicate 20 minutes to get the most out of this. If this is helpful share to 7 friends. If you want to learn how to subscribe to this podcast, send me an email through my website christianmeditationpodcast.com. I would also love to hear your thoughts about the podcast or scriptures you would like me to cover in the podcast. I would love to hear from you. Outline: Relaxation, Meditation, Prayer, Contemplation, Visualization Relaxation and breathing exercises to reduce stress: Relaxation helps us prepare our minds to listen to God. Begin by becoming aware of your body. As you do and you become aware of your breathing pattern. Breath slowly. Allow yourself to calm. Feel your muscles unflex. Let all compulsive thoughts go and focus on breathing, preparing your mind to receive the scripture. Biblical Meditation on Bible verses John 17:20-23: 20 "I pray not only for them, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, 21 so that they may all be one, as you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be in us, that the world may believe that you sent me. 22 And I have given them the glory you gave me, so that they may be one, as we are one, 23 I in them and you in me, that they may be brought to perfection as one, that the world may know that you sent me, and that you loved them even as you loved me. Meditation prayer to God: What message stood out to you during the reading of this scripture? This is part of the great intercessory prayer. This is Jesus praying for his disciples. Right before this he specifically mentions how he is praying for those that his father had given him, those who believe in Him. When Jesus prayed for them he prays that they may be one with Him. Jesus wants you to be one with him as he is one with the Father. Imagine that. My goal here is not to examine an abstract theology but to look at the concrete way Jesus compares His union with the Father to the union we can share with Him. Regardless of how literal this is, this is an amazing overpowering thought. What kind of things does Jesus pray for? He prays that you can be one with him. His greatest desire is that we are joined with Him. Let that sink in. You can be one with Jesus. This is not through our power. This is because we are a gift to Jesus. Despite all our brokenness. Despite our rebellious desires, somehow Jesus considers fallen humans a gift. Despite what we cost Him. Despite Gethsemane, despite Golgotha, despite the blood on the Cross and the tomb, He calls us friends. May this union with God continually draw us closer to Jesus' desires for us. Contemplative Meditation with God: Through a contemplative silence we open our hearts to God. We experience His friendship. We sit in awe of his love and mercy. Bring to mind the last time you experienced awe. Apply that to unity with God. Imagine God's loving face smiling at you. Watch God redeem you: There are powerful lessons from reflecting on God's word. As you have been meditating on these things, consider what is the most valuable thing that has been impressed on you. Visualize that moment is as great of detail as possible. Share these insights with someone you trust spiritually, in the comments section in iTunes, or by contacting me through my website christianmeditationpodcast.com. Conclusion: Please use this podcast as a tool, and not a crutch, to help you draw closer to God and feel his peace. The power to feel peace comes from interacting with the Spirit of God as well as tapping into the power of relaxation he created inside of us. If this content was meaningful for you share it with 7 people you care about. The only thing I get out of this podcast is knowing that this message can bring peace to people's lives. As you share it you can help bring them some peace in their lives as well. I release a new episode each Sunday morning at 1 AM mountain time. By subscribing to the podcast you can easily download them to your smartphone each week when they come out. LINK: FaceBook, iTunes, Chistianmeditationpodcast.com, YouTube

Many times we don't understand the work that God has for us. We don't understand that the most important thing we can do in this life is to take care of each other. Jesus responded that the two greatest commandments were to Love God and to Love our fellow human beings. Without this love, we can do nothing of value in the world. This week's episode will be a guided meditation on John 21:15-17. I recommend that you get into a comfortable chair where you can sit uninterrupted for 20 minutes. Introduction: As you do that I want to thank you for listening. I am blown away by the recent spike in people who have joined us in the last couple weeks. We have had hundreds of downloads. I am grateful for this and I have realized the power that you all have in helping to share this message. So if you find this meditation helpful please share it with 10 other people. I am glad that everyone I have shared it with has responded so positively. I am also on iTunes now. and I would greatly appreciate reviews there. It helps make this content more searchable. I have included the link here in the show notes below iTunes link Outline review: Relaxation to increase focus on God, scripture to meditate on, prayer for inspiration and guidance, contemplative worship, and visualization of change. Relaxation exercise to reduce distraction: Notice your breathing. Allow it to slow. Feel your stomach gently expand. Breath in for 5 seconds, gently hold it for 5 seconds, then let it out for 5 seconds. Bible verses for meditation: 15 When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?" He said to him, "Yes, Lord; you know that I love you." He said to him, "Feed my lambs." 16 He said to him a second time, "Simon, son of John, do you love me?" He said to him, "Yes, Lord; you know that I love you." He said to him, "Tend my sheep." 17 He said to him the third time, "Simon, son of John, do you love me?" Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time, "Do you love me?" and he said to him, "Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you." Jesus said to him, "Feed my sheep. Meditate on the meaning of scripture: Reflect on the key verse, phrase or word that stuck out to you. We find this story occurring right after the death and resurrection of Jesus. Peter, unsure what to do goes back to what he knows, fishing. Due to the friendship that the apostles have developed and his leadership role, they follow him. While they are doing this they saw a man on the shore. He told them where to cast their nets. As they did this they brought in a huge catch of fish. Peter recognized Jesus and dove into the water to swim to him. After that we see this gentle but powerful rebuke by Jesus. He is building the men who will lead His earthly kingdom, with His guidance. The Apostles don't understand this yet. The metaphor is not lost to John. The efforts of man are unprofitable, but when guided by Jesus, they can bring in results greater than they could have imagined. Even after witnessing His ministry, these humble men don't know how to run a church or bolster a fledgling Jesus movement. They aren't sure what to do, so they do what they are comfortable with. Jesus does not let them stay comfortable. Jesus' simple repeated question now rings in our ears. Do we love God? If so what are we doing about it? What are we willing to do about it? What is the greatest thing we could do if we allow Jesus to guide us through our discomfort? What is the greatest thing you can imagine God doing through you? Meditative Prayer on the impressions received: Pray as the Spirit directs. Contemplative Meditation Sit in awe of the Glory of God as you would a beautiful work of art or a grad mountain view. Visualization of Godly Change: As fully as possible visualize what that change would look like in your life. How can you bless the lives of others? Make it as tangible as possible. Commit to sharing these insights with 7 people. Conclusion Thank you for joining me for this meditation. I hope you have found it valuable. If you did the way you can pay it forward is by sharing this content with 7 people who you feel need this message. You can share a number of different links: FaceBook, iTunes, or on Chistianmeditationpodcast.com. Our lives should be dedicated to helping others. In our profession, in our personal lives, and in our spiritual service we should maintain the view that what we do can bless others. Jesus showed Peter directly what he wanted for him. We can be guided to fill the niche in this world that God has in mind for us. You can bless the lives of those around you and participate in the healing work of God by sharing this content.

Introduction: In the USA we celebrate Independence Day on the 4th of July. For us, this represents liberty and freedom. The Bible teaches of a different kind of liberty, Christian liberty. We will discuss that. Christian Liberty is different. Get comfortable. Music Credit Andrew Payne Statio: Guided relaxation Lectio: 11 And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.12 "I have the right to do anything," you say—but not everything is beneficial. "I have the right to do anything"—but I will not be mastered by anything. 13 You say, "Food for the stomach and the stomach for food, and God will destroy them both." The body, however, is not meant for sexual immorality but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. Meditatio: The Corinthians really struggled in many ways. Paul's letter to them included many different corrections about sexual immorality, and various contentions as well. Among them was a form of spiritual covetousness. The argued and had ongoing drama.This was so pronounced that Roman Christians wrote a letter correcting the saints at Corinth in an apocryphal epistle known as 1 Clement. These Corinthians were confused on how to fully live the Gospel. Paul taught that. As Christians we consider the Law to have been fulfilled in Jesus Christ. At times we can be tempted to think that this means that we can do whatever we want as long as we have faith in Jesus. As Paul says in Romans 6:1 "What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase?" His answer to this is "by no means" or "God forbid." There are times when we may argue "I have the right to do anything" as if there is no sin. The transition from the way in which this was taught in the law versus the way it is taught in the New Testament was important. It changed from a set of prescribed rules to a set of prescribed principles. Instead of very direct do's and don't's we are given higher principles upon which to guide our action. What is harder to live? Is it easier to live the higher law? I would argue that this requires greater spiritual maturity to live the higher principle based system. Yet we don't do it alone. God will help. He guides us through his Holy Spirit. The challenge is that we have to be listening to gain the full benefit of this. As we yield to God's Spirit, He will guide us to take action that will draw us nearer to him and cause us to change in meaningful ways. We can be sanctified through His Spirit. Oratio: Prayer as indicated by the spirit. Contemplatio: Sit in contemplative silence in the spirit of God. Operatio: Visualize the change indicated to you through this scripture and share the message. Conclusion: Subscribe to the RSS by putting the following URL into your podcasting app. christianmeditationpodcast.com/rss If your podcast app requires the full feed URL then try this one. http://www.christianmeditationpodcast.com/rss iPhone: Click here for information to learn how to subscribe via the iPhone app. Android: Click here for a recommendation on a podcast app Each app will be slightly different on how to subscribe. On podcast addict you click the plus icon on the top of the app. Then click on the RSS button which is the second button down on the right after you click on the plus button. Then input the URL information from above.

In the last episode, I spent a lot of time on biological factors of change. This episode I want to focus more on emotional validation, and how Jesus did this. I have been blessed and humbled by the overwhelmingly positive feedback I have been receiving. It is really motivating for me to continue to put these episodes out. Outline: After a brief intro I will begin a relaxation exercise (Statio). This will be followed by a quiet reading of Scripture (Lectio) followed by Prayer (Oratio). We will then take some moments to bask in God's spirit (Contemplatio), then imagine how the message of this scripture can change you. Prepare yourself to relax for 20 minutes or so by getting in a comfortable chair. Introduction: This scripture was not chosen by me. I asked an 8-year-old girl what were her favorite scriptures and what I should do an episode on. She said I should do one on Jesus appearing to Mary at the Tomb. She also listed some other scriptures that I will cover in the future, but I was struck with this one. This woman in embryo saw something special in this scripture. Perhaps it's because she is drawn to a woman being the center of Jesus's attention through her unshaken faith. Maybe it's because she hopes to have that faith. Perhaps it's because she lives in a culture that constantly degrades both men and women but particularly women. When I thought of this my heart ached. To me, this attack is not accidental. How can we stand against this attack? It is not through our own strength Statio: Allow your body to relax and don't be distracted by the impulses of the day. Prepare your mind to be open to scripture. Lectio: John 20:13-16 New American Bible 13 And they said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping?" She said to them, "They have taken my Lord, and I don't know where they laid him." 14 When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus there, but did not know it was Jesus. 15 Jesus said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?"She thought it was the gardener and said to him, "Sir, if you carried him away, tell me where you laid him, and I will take him." 16 Jesus said to her, "Mary!" She turned and said to him in Hebrew, "Rabbouni," which means Teacher Oratio: Prayer guided by the Holy Spirit Contemplatio: Sit contemplatively while reflecting on the grandeur of God. Operatio: Imagine how God can help you change your life. Conclusion: God in His grace has decided to bestow on us a gift greater than anything we could imagine. He does this because He loves us. Scripture says that we love Him because He first loved us (John 4:19). I hope you go through the rest of your day, week and beyond feeling the value you have to God. He loves you and He loves me in a way we don't fully understand. Thanks for joining me. To get an outline of this episode or to see other episodes like this go to christianmeditationpodcast.com. You can subscribe to this podcast through podcast apps by adding the URL christianmeditationpodcast.com/rss which will be included in the show notes. I'm in the process of developing cover art for the podcast and once I get that complete, I'll submit to iTunes and other directories. As always I appreciate hearing from you. You can also reach out to me through my website contact form at christianmeditationpodcast.com I encourage you to use this podcast as a springboard, to a crutch, to improve your relationship with God. Until next week, may the Spirit of God rest with you and continually change you.

Science is not doctrine but, when taken in the context that it is generally available revelation about God's creation, it can enlighten our minds with additional inspiration to improve. In recent decades it has been shown that human brain cells continually grow throughout life. This debunks old school ways of seeing intelligence and mental skills as unchangeable. It has been demonstrated that the human brain physically rewires itself when we place intention on it. For example, when you learn to juggle, the parts of your brain that have to do with tracking visual inputs, grow. This information has been applied to meditation with increasingly motivating results. If you meditate consistently over months and years the parts of your brain associated with emotional regulation, memory, focus, attention, and happiness grow. This is amazing to know because it means that they hardware that your mind runs on can be physically upgraded by practice. By spending time in silence in meditation your brain grows. Although there is not specific research on Christian meditation, I suspect that these benefits would be joined with other spiritual benefits as well such as growth in the feeling that a loving God is watching over you. Relaxation: This relaxation is more focused on thinking about the grandeur of creation. Other episodes have been more of a guided step by step process. Let me know what you think You being alive is a miracle. The air you breath has traveled the world. You could be breathing air that was in Jerusalem a thousand years ago. Your body is built from the dust. Specifically through molecules that were in other plants and animals. This is thought that can join us to the rest of creation. God can look across the millions of miles that separate his galaxies and see you, not as a spec on one of billions of rocks, but as someone worth the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Ezekiel 36:25-27 25 Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you.26 A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.27 And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them. Meditation: Through the waters of Baptism we can be symbolically cleansed as we give up, and he takes our unclean hearts. He gives us a new heart. Just as we reviewed in the idea of neuroplasticity (the brain's ability to change and grow) God can change our heart, referring to the emotional and spiritual motivation in us can increase and change as well. He puts His Spirit into us. This will purify us. Prayer: Pray according to the dictates of your heart. Contemplation: Imagine yourself standing before the throne of God. Application: Now visualize the change you feel you need to make based on this experience. Share this message with someone you know or via feedback on iTunes or other directories. Blessings

Drink and eat in remembrance of me. A meditation in preparation for taking the Sacrament of the Last Supper, Eucharist, Communion. A way to practice preparing your mind to be prepared for communing with God while partaking of the Sacrament. Intro: I'm so grateful for the ongoing feedback I'm getting from people who are benefiting from this podcast. Perhaps I shouldn't say this but I am surprised that this podcast is being so well received so far, so thank you to all of you who have reached out to me to let me know what you think. One piece of feedback I received that I want to use is a heads up at the beginning, that this episode, like all the others, will involve an invitation to sit quietly for 15 to 20 minutes. So if you are not in a comfortable chair I invite you to find a comfortable position. Most Christians participate in the ritual outlined as the Sacrament, also called the Eucharist or Communion. What does that mean? It means something similar, yet somewhat different, to many Christians. Something I think most of us share is that it provides an opportunity for us to reflect on our standing with God. We come before the God of heaven and are indicating to Him that we are remembering him and the Salvific sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Many people find it a challenge to remain focused on the moment as the silence fills the church. In the time it takes for everyone else to have the Sacrament offered to them, there is a perfect opportunity to reflect in a meditative way. This meditation is intended for that specific purpose. I am confident that as we meditate on the meaning that Jesus offered to us, we will feel closer to God and truly feel that we are in communion with him. Our meditation will begin with Relaxation, followed by the reading from the King James Bible, then reflecting on the meaning of the verses, followed by prayer after which we will allow time for silent contemplation, then finalizing this episode with an invitation on how this experience can change our lives. Let's begin with the relaxation: Guided relaxation. Then on to the reading: 26 ¶ And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body. 27 And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; 28 For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. Meditation: This scripture represents the institution of the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper. There is not an extensive reference in the scriptures to the last supper but it is clear that it was important to early Christians. Paul writes about it in his letter to the corinthians in 1 Corinthians 11:23-32. Jesus taught publicly about the need to eat of his flesh and drink his blood in the Gospel of John. After this Jesus lost many disciples. He asked Peter will you also go away? To which Peter responded: "To whom would we go?" Is Jesus asking us today the same question when our minds wonder as we sit waiting to eat of the Sacrament? Is he asking us as he did to his Apostles in Gethsemane "could you not watch with me one hour?" As we practice focusing our thoughts we can be more open to the spirit as we partake of the Sacrament. Prayer: Pray as the spirit directs Contemplation: Enjoy silence in the Spirit of God. Practical application: Visualize how this change will be implemented in your life.

What manner of man is this Intro christianmeditationpodcast.com Positive feedback Multiple people gave positive feedback and I appreciated the technical feedback as well. This meditation is not entirely Lectio Divina but shares many things with that style of reflection and meditation. I referenced Tim Gray's called Praying Scriputre for change: an Introduction to Lectio Divina. There is great power in stillness is reducing distraction, even if there is noise around us. As you settle into a comfortable place I want to challenge the notion that silence is required for these. Many times in the hospital people seemed to try and force out any noise. In reality, these noises are part of your reality right now. They don't need to be your enemy. Relaxation Consider the calming power of God.

For details about me feel free to see the about me section of my website. I will also be listing an episode 000 explaining my theological framework. There are components borrowed from general relaxation practices as well Lectio Divina. I referenced Tim Gray's Book which is available on Amazon here (I don't have an affiliate link yet). I outline the structure for the meditation as follows: 1) Relaxation exercise (deep breathing, guided relaxation) 2) Read the verses twice (encouraging thoughtfulness) 3) Meditation (reflection on content) 4) Prayer (I lead then give some time for you) 5) Contemplative moment 6) Visualize application I'd love to hear from you about what insights you gained from this experience.