Introduction

Entering the Mind of Christ

The practice of [meditation] is the practice of quieting oneself.

When a person becomes quiet, he or she can experience unity with Christ.

The Psalmist says, “Be still and know that I am God,”

indicating, in the Hebrew,

“Let go and allow yourself to fall into God…”

Meditation is a simple tool, providing a way…

to enter that place of inner peace

where [one] can quietly listen to

and experience the presence of God.

The realization which comes…is only entering into one’s deepest self,

where an individual knows through experience

that God is in and throughout his or her entire being.

It is the experiential consciousness of God’s presence

in and throughout the entire creation.

This is the profound consciousness in which Jesus walked.

He tells us he only speaks what he hears from the Father.

And he teaches that this consciousness is available to you and me.

Listening within, mind quieted and spirit stilled,

one hears the Father and then is able to respond to life as Jesus did.

This simple clarity is the clarity of the [meditative] mind;

it is the clarity of the mind of Christ.

—John King

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Text Box: Still Presence Spirituality Centre To fully appreciate this website’s audio-visual material, please turn on your speakers. A Ministry of Support for Contemplative Living

Practicing Contemplative Prayer (Meditation)

We believe contemplative prayer
is an essential starting point for Christian faith and practice.
We also believe that it nurtures our capacity
to experience the Presence of God in each moment.

The Divine Presence is always with us,
but we need to open ourselves to the Divine Mystery.
Unless we do,
we can miss the experiential quality of living in the Presence of God
that the “good news” (the Gospel) is founded upon.
Through the practice of meditation, we experience
the “Kingdom of God” in our midst.

The “inner dialogue,” our continual discursive thinking,
drowns out the “still small voice” within.
The practice of meditation, however,
frees us from being trapped in our thoughts, and
calms the mind so that we can listen to (and begin to trust)
the deeper wisdom of the Spirit within.

We believe it is important to reclaim meditation practice
as a foundational discipline on the Christian path.
Through this discipline,
we practice a key element of our journey:
the total surrender of ourselves into the hands of God.

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Text Box: 1. Place
Begin your time of meditation by finding a quiet, comfortable place. Create a space for yourself that will be conducive to meditating, where you are not likely to be interrupted. 2. Posture
Sit comfortably in a chair with your feet flat on the floor, and hands relaxed in your lap. What is important about your posture is to have your back straight, but not tense, and to be remain alert within yourself. You may either shut your eyes, or keep them open. If you keep them open, have your eyes soft-focused, with eyelids slightly lowered. 3. Relax
Scan your entire body to see if there are any points of tension in the shoulders, the neck, around the eyes, and so on. Relax them. 4. Focus of Attention
Begin your meditation by taking three long, slow, deep breaths. Then, focus your attention one particular object. The focus of attention may be following your breath, repeating a prayer phrase (mantra), gazing at an icon, focusing on sounds, focusing on the sensations of your body, etc. If you are drawn to repeating a mantra, some mantras you might want to consider are: Jesus; God; Spirit; Lord; peace; Abba; Maranatha (come, Lord); amen; God is love; be still and know that I am God; and Lord, have mercy. Whatever you use, the task is not one of analysis. It is only to focus your attention on one particular event to help control the wandering mind. 5. Dealing with Distractions
Whenever distractions occur, (as they always do!) simply come back to the present moment by returning to your focus of attention. Whenever you loose touch with the present moment, you return. You don’t judge, evaluate, cling to, or repress your thoughts. You simply accept them for what they are. And when you realize that your attention has wandered away, you simply notice the thought and gently return your attention to your focus of meditation. 6. Ending your Meditation
After your time of meditation, you may choose to express silently the prayers of your heart. This may lead you into about five minutes of prayers for others and for the world. You may wish to complete your time of silence by saying the Lord’s Prayer or other closing words. Start with five or ten minutes, and gradually increase to twenty to thirty minutes, twice a day, as you become more comfortable in meditating. Many people find that just after waking in the morning, and just before going to bed at night, are good times. Experiment, however, and find the times that work for you. 7. Be Gentle with Yourself
Contemplative prayer is simple, but not easy. No matter how strong our resolve to be present and concentrated, it is difficult to keep the mind from wandering off into memories, plans, or fantasies. In fact, several minutes may pass before you even notice that you have become distracted. Remember, however, we need to have patience, knowing that when the restless mind is stilled, we begin to experience the Divine Presence at the heart of our life and all life. 8. Living a Contemplative Life
The object of our practice is to develop the “mind of Christ,” and bring our contemplative practice into all aspects of our everyday life. Thus our practices becomes a continual opening to the present moment—to the living Presence of God.

Some Guidelines for Beginning the Practice of Meditation

The Still Presence Spirituality Centre is made up of spiritual seekers from diverse backgrounds, practicing contemplative Christianity in all aspects of our lives. We have found Jesus’ statement to be true that “the Kingdom of God is within you” (Luke 17.21).

We are committed to Christ and the Christian tradition, and we have learned through the practice of meditation that the Spirit of God speaks to us through the church and through other traditions, strengthening us in our spiritual life.

In keeping with this spirit, we call your attention to links expressing the light of the Divine Mystery in all its many colours."

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