Daily Meditations from John N. N. Ng'ang'a: Week of 31may 2010 Meditation
 
Day 1
Josh 1:7-8 8 Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. NIV

Refer to the book: CELEBRATION OF DISCIPLINES BY RICHARD J. FOSTER-CHAPTER 1 :_DOOR TO LIBERATION (page_3_)

'Mediation for example if allowed at all is not thought at all as an encounter between a person and God but as psychological manipulation'.

I found this a very apt statement because meditation is now an exercise done in management circles as a way of dealing with stress and improving performance rather than for spiritual reasons.

Foster quoted above also says that 'superficiality is the curse of our time' but eastern religions are invading the rest of the world and mediations is one of their entry point. They are succeeding because the church has failed to teach the discipline of mediations and nominal Christians may not even be aware it is expected of Christians. The offer it is a performance enhancing activity and because we all want to be achievers it is getting a following.

In the process some Christians are even drawn into eastern religions. We must go back to biblical mediations.

 

Day 2
Ps 19:14 May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer. NIV

CELEBRATION OF DISCIPLINES BY RICHARD J. FOSTER _Chapter number and Title:_CHAPTER 2 :_ THE DISCIPLINE OF MEDITATION (page_26_)

'It is impossible to learn how to meditate from a book. We learn to meditate by meditating.'

I find this a very true statement. Having read many writers on how to meditate, how to do quiet time, I still find that how I do it may not fit the way the writer does it. However I feel that what is important is that I feel I have met the Lord and i come out of the exercise feeling spiritually stronger and able to deal with challenges of the day. I feel I am not alone for the rest of the day and that God is interested in all I go through.

 

Day 3
Ps 104:34 34 May my meditation be pleasing to him, as I rejoice in the LORD. NIV

CELEBRATION OF DISCIPLINES BY RICHARD J. FOSTER _Chapter number and Title:_CHAPTER 4 :_DISCIPLINE OF FASTING _ (page_48_)

'Throughout scripture fasting refers to abstaining from food for spiritual reasons.

I believe this statement helps us to know how and when to fast. It suggests that if we do not eat and yet have no spiritual contact with God during the period then this is just a type of hunger strike with no spiritual value and hence cannot be called christian fasting. I believe you need to have time to pray if you are at time of fasting.

If you fast when you are so occupied you have no time to talk to God , I doubt it will be useful both for the task keeping you busy and even for spiritual gain.

But you can fail to eat for other useful reasons like slimming or for health reasons .But if it is fasting then allocate time to commune with God when you have your body under subjection.

 

Day 4
1 Kings 8:38-39 38 and when a prayer or plea is made by any of your people Israel-each one aware of the afflictions of his own heart, and spreading out his hands toward this temple- 39 then hear from heaven, your dwelling place. NIV

CELEBRATION OF DISCIPLINES BY RICHARD J. FOSTER _Chapter number and Title:_CHAPTER 3 :_DISCIPLINE OF PRAYER _(page_40_)

'The inner sense of compassion is the clearest indication from the lord that this is a prayer project for you.'

Although Foster says that we should not wait until we feel like praying before we pray, I agree with him that if you feel a concern for someone's condition ,it should indicate the need to pray for the person. You should assume that the lord is giving you the burden for the person so that you pray for him.

Also it is important that you have love for the person you are praying for .it will be difficult to pray in faith if you do not even want the person to experience what you are praying for. You should want the good for the person you are praying for and hence it will be easy to trust the lord for the prayer item.

 

Day 5
John 8:31-32 31 To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. 32 Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." NIV

CELEBRATION OF DISCIPLINES BY RICHARD J. FOSTER _Chapter number and Title:_CHAPTER 5 :_DISCIPLINE OF STUDY _ (page_66_) Jesus as you remember, reminds us that it is not just the truth, but the knowledge of the truth that sets us free.

I agree with Foster on this statement. I have discovered many Christians who listen to God's word Sunday after Sunday and even verbally confess Jesus as Lord, but when a crisis happens in their family, they way to respond to it tells you that they do not know the God of the bible.

When the child gets very sick, one feels compelled in Africa to visit a 'mganga' or witch doctor with claim that the child has failed to get healed despite visiting the best hospitals. He knows the witch doctor is not a believer in Jesus but he still wants to visit him as having a solution his God does not have.

If he know and understood that God is the only 'uncreated' being then he would not pray and then refer a hard matter to lesser being since the spirits or even the devil are inferior created beings. Having information about God and knowing him are two different things.

God has already instructed us not to go to such powers.

Deut 18:9-12 9 When you enter the land the LORD your God is giving you, do not learn to imitate the detestable ways of the nations there. 10 Let no one be found among you who sacrifices his son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, 11 or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead. 12 Anyone who does these things is detestable to the LORD, and because of these detestable practices the LORD your God will drive out those nations before you. NIV

The pastors will therefore need to encourage the study of God's word by individual Christians until they actually understand it and live by it.

Rom 3 :23…for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. One of the things the lord had to help me out of is desire to be self dependent and not need him. Several failures have got me to where I know any achievement is due to his hand in my life.

I have also discovered that trying to impress him by working for him can never suffice because even my best is never good enough. He only helps me due to his grace and mercy When you seek to run your own life, I have noted ,you end up hurting even those you sincerely think you love, and you can even ruin them in the name of helping them.

 

Day 6
Rom 6:23..for the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

The fact that I felt salvation was the protestants who had mistaken the truth, kept me from listening to really hear what it was all about. i also wondered how anyone could really be saved on earth and be sure about it Later of course I realized that my problem was really ignorance and once I understood his grace and what it can achieve I finally accepted him as the lord of my life.

 

Day 7
Phil 4:13 I can do all things through Christ who strengths me.

This is very significant statement to me. Yes I am ordinary but once Christ takes over my life, then truly I am under new management. The n new management not only gives new direction but also invests new resources to enable new achievements that could not be achieved before.

This, I have discovered is what the world misses and easily keeps one from accepting the lord.

You do not face the challenges of life alone any more, once you surrender your life to be run by Christ. He t takes you to heights you could never have imagined. He makes you loose taste of sin that had earlier tormented you. He gives you interest in things you never knew even existed.