1.12-A simple practice that will transform your life.

1.12--A simple practice that will transform your life.



According to a scientific study using an MRI done in 2015 by Maddalena Boccia, Laura Piccardi and Paola Guariglia they studied people who were meditators and those who were not.  They found that certain areas of the brain light up and are developed with mediation.

Meditation can help people who are aging to have excellent mental improvement.
Improved self-awareness.
Improved self-control.
Improved focus and attention.

Improved ability to execute follow through.
Improved memory.

Jesus made prayer and reflection upon Scripture the very basis of his life on earth.
We quiet our hearts.
We move our mind from the things of this world to reflect on  If you know how to worry you know how to meditate.  Nothing can do more to transform your life and make you more like Jesus than daily reflection on God and His word.

-God’s word.  We read a passage.  Perhaps in silence.  Perhaps aloud. We might survey and large portion or a very small portion depending on our time and our need.

-God’s nature.

-God’s abilities.  We rest in His ability. Our God is able.

-God’s works.

We prayerfully ponder, muse, chew on the words of Scripture.  We pray and talk to God about the reading and ask Him to open our eyes to the truth of the passage or passages that we need to apply to our own life for His mercy to transform us.

We have a goal of simply permitting the Holy Spirit to activate the life-giving Word of God.

Just when we arise.
Specific time for dwelling and focusing on these things.
As we go to sleep.

Notice these passages:
Matthew 4.

4 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. ² And after He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He ^[a]then became hungry. ³ And the tempter came and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.” ⁴ But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.’”

⁵ Then the devil *took Him into the holy city and had Him stand on the pinnacle of the temple, ⁶ and *said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down; for it is written,

‘He will command His angels concerning You’;

and

‘On their hands they will bear You up,
So that You will not strike Your foot against a stone.’”

⁷ Jesus said to him, “^[b]On the other hand, it is written, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’”

⁸ Again, the devil *took Him to a very high mountain and *showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory; ⁹ and he said to Him, “All these things I will give You, if You fall down and ^[c]worship me.” ¹⁰ Then Jesus *said to him, “Go, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and ^[d]serve Him only.’” ¹¹ Then the devil *left Him; and behold, angels came and began to minister to Him.

Mark 1.
³⁵ In the early morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house, and went away to a secluded place, and was praying there. ³⁶ Simon and his companions searched for Him; ³⁷ they found Him, and *said to Him, “Everyone is looking for You.” ³⁸ He *said to them, “Let us go somewhere else to the towns nearby, so that I may ^[s]preach there also; for that is what I came for.”
2 Cor. 3.12-18
¹² Therefore having such a hope, we use great boldness in our speech, ¹³ and are not like Moses, who used to put a veil over his face so that the sons of Israel would not look intently at the end of what was fading away. ¹⁴ But their minds were hardened; for until this very day at the reading of the old covenant the same veil ^[v]remains unlifted, because it is removed in Christ. ¹⁵ But to this day whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their heart; ¹⁶ but whenever a person turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. ¹⁷ Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. ¹⁸ But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.