With lightning swiftness and a single swipe, the pail and milk stool were swept from my grasp. As I struggled to my feet, I vowed that I would milk that cow “without kickers” (restraints) just like my dad could.
The battle of wits between that cow and I led to the invention of a one-legged milk stool that increased my agility in dodging out of harm’s way. After some careful and repeated meditation on this situation, I realized I had an advantage. When old “gutter foot” Gurty shifted her weight to strike, all I had to do was put the back of my hand into the crook of her leg and she seemed to have no confidence to bring her leg forward to kick me. That feeling of having a kicker on stalled her in her tracks.
A little meditation goes a long way
Meditation sharpens our understanding and arms us against the vain philosophies that are bound to infiltrate our Christian lives. Many people have their personal understanding of meditation and, often as not, these views differ. Most are familiar with the traditional Indian Guru, sitting cross-legged and glassy-eyed for days on end, seemingly void of any brainwave activity. Is this the proper use of meditation?
How should a person meditate?
First of all, one needs to understand the meaning of the word meditation. Strong’s Concordance describes it as a pondering, a taking in and an outward mumbling or talking to oneself. If you look it up you will see it has the connotation of ruminating, to murmur, to ponder and to talk.
Ruminating is what a bovine does in processing her food. Animals that chew their cud first eat their fill of grass before settling down to “deal with their meal.” The cow contentedly regurgitates a previously swallowed ball of grass. She chews on it awhile, re-swallows it into one of her stomach chambers and then exchanges it for another ball to further masticate.
A cow’s stomach is divided into four parts. The cow knows which chamber to send which ball of grass, and the final result is the thorough breakdown of the rough vegetation. This vegetation, when digested and sent to the body cells, ultimately becomes part of her.
What is noteworthy is that this process is a “mulling over,” a complete turning over of material. This is what the word meditate means and this is its intended function. To benefit the most from meditation, we must examine how to properly use it.
There are three parts to meditation
1. Read
All living things must eat to live. In Matthew 4:4, Christ makes it clear to any would-be sons of God that they, too, must eat. And that “eating” is reading in the word of God. John 6:35 says Christ’s words are life, and He is the Bread of life. We eat by hearing God’s word preached to us.
2. Ruminate
As a cow settles down to digest her meal, so must we digest what we read. We think about it, analyze it and store it in our long-term memory. If you do not ruminate, it will go no further than one’s short-term memory.
King David, like all the kings of Israel, was required to know the law of God. In fact, each king had to write out a copy for himself. David meditated on God’s word and on His wonderful works (Psalm 119:15,27,97). He read and ruminated them.
3. Write
The cow eventually digests her meal and it becomes a part of her. For us, it is useful to write down what we think about what we have read and heard. Some folks find it helpful to write a position paper. You’ll discover how well studied material has been committed to your long-term memory. This is one’s personal understanding so it isn’t for public disclosure at this point.
Try it! David did! We have his record. He wrote down his thoughts and they became part of him (Psalm 119:11). Even after reading the law and recording his thoughts in the book of Psalms, David hungered continuously for deeper understanding of the word of God (Psalm 119:33-36). This process is cyclical when used with God’s spirit. Communication with God feeds on itself.
As one reads, ruminates and writes, deeper and more insightful questions and conclusions arise that cause you to go back and read again. Read, ruminate and write. The messages we hear at Sabbath services and what we read in Church literature are also food for us. These things compel us, like the noble Bereans, to read, ruminate and write. This process is a life-long habit because there is much to learn.
The study of God’s word becomes a beautiful experience, for you, for your entire life. It is a banquet of plenty.
