Lessons In Truth - Lesson 1 - Annotation 5
What is the purpose of meditation? On what should one's thoughts be centered in moments of meditation?
5. The purpose of meditation is to become aware of and acquainted with our spiritual nature, which we know as the Christ, or the I AM, our indwelling Lord. Meditation is contemplation of God and His ideas that make up this spiritual nature, that may be expressed through our thinking (the intellect or conscious phase of mind) and our feeling (the subsconscious phase of mind). When used, ideas become habitual in our mind (our consciousness) and active in our live and affairs.
God ideas merely held in our mind (consciousness) lie dormant and do not produce the desired good in our life. Our consciousness must be open, drawing ideas from the one source and expressing what we have received. Were we to spend all our time in meditation, receiving divine ideas and not using them to advantage, for ourselves and others, we would not be complying with the spiritual law of giving and receiving. We would be attempting to get without giving. It is often easier to meditate than it is to express and manifest divine ideas in every situation of our daily life, but we must learn to do both if we would live the Christ life.
During meditation, our thoughts should be centered only on divine ideas, on the good we desire to express and not on the problems we wish to solve or the illness we wish to have healed. We meditate on the idea of life and we build a consciousness of health and wholeness. We dwell on thoughts of light and wisdom and we are illumined and guided. We contemplate peace and we are filled with a sense of harmony and well-being. We think about the idea of substance, and become conscious of God as our constant and abundant supply. In meditation we contemplate God as impersonal Principle, (our Creator), efficiently carrying on the work of the universe, and also as our own indwelling Lord, the law of our being, the loving Father-Mother God working within us as life, as love, as intelligence.
When the mind waits consciously in the presence of God, infinite Spirit, it becomes united with the ideas (attributes) of God such as life, love, wisdom, abundance. As we develop the habit of communing with God in meditation and prayer, we come into the Silence and our consciousness becomes charged with the activity of divine ideas, our body takes on renewed life, and our affairs become divinely ordered.
We are always one with God, for we can never be separated from Him, but through time set aside to contemplate the rich blessings of God, we become consciously "one with the Father" and are thus able to express more of our divine nature.
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Preceding Entry: Instead of seeking primarily for "demonstrations" or for manifest results, what must be our objective?
Following Entry: Should one be too busy to take time for meditation and prayer? Is it necessary to "practice the presence of God"?
