meditation lunch and learn stillness in the centre

MEDITATION LUNCH AND LEARNStillness in the Centre

“Be still and know that I am God”Psalm 46:10

Presentation content

• Purpose of today’s presentation

• Meditation – a practice deeply rooted in the Christian tradition

• The nature of the mind

• Introducing a simple and powerful meditation technique

• What meditation is and is not

• Meditation at Cedar Park United – a pilot project

A pearl of great price

“The kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls, who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it”

(Mathew 13, 45-46)

A simple definition of meditation

“Meditation is the process of systematically allowing the mind to

become still for specific periods of time each day”

Harnessing a natural ability of the mind

“Our mind has a natural ability to be quiet”

How to pray…

“And when you pray, do not babble on like pagans, for they think that by their many words they will be heard.

Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.…”Matthew 6:7

How to pray…

“But when you pray, go into your inner room, shut your door, and pray to your Father, who is unseen. And your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you”. (Matthew, 6:6)

How to pray…

“But if we hope for what we do not yet see, we wait for it patiently. In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know how we ought to pray, but the Spirit

Himself intercedes for us with groans too deep for words” (Romans, 25-26)

“The kingdom of God is within you”

“When asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, “The kingdom of God will not come with observable signs. Nor will people say, ‘Look, here it is,’ or ‘There it is.’ For you see, the kingdom of God is in your midst (within you).” Luke 17: 21-22

“Blessed are…”

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven”

Mathew 5:3

Entering the kingdom of God

Then Jesus said to His disciples, “Truly I tell you, it is difficult for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” (Mathew 19:23-24)

“Seek and you shall find…”

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened” (Mathew 7:7-8)

A spiritual revolution…

« Be renewed by a spiritual revolution, so that you can put on the new self that has been created in God’s way in the goodness and holiness of the truth » (Ephesians 4:24)

John Cassian (ca. 360 – 435 AD), monk and scholar

“The mind thus casts out and renounces the rich and ample matter of

all thoughts and restricts itself to the poverty of a single verse”

(Conferences)

The Cloud of Unknowing (unknown author)

“We must therefore pray in the height and

the depth, the length and the breadth of

our spirit;

and not in many words but in a little word.

Fix this word fast to your heart so that it is

always there come what may.”

John Main - Benedictine monk

“Meditation is an entrance into the nearness of God who is to be found in our hearts. It is also an entrance into God’s infinite space. As each of us must discover for ourselves, it is entry into this vast, silent space that is the real power of meditation. From that silence God answers our

questions; God answers the yearnings of our heart with the simple answer of love” (Fully Alive)

One definition of the nature of the mind and what we are

“Our mind is a thought machine”

MIND

“We are the awareness”

AWARENESS

Quieting the mind – the ocean analogy

Image credit: Erik Thompson, MA

“Behind the wave of your consciousness is the sea of God’s presence”

Paramhansa Yoganda

“Meditation is like tuning your instrument before taking it out on the road” (*)

(*) Jon Kabat-Zinn

Mantra as a prayer-word

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God”John 1:1

A technique of effortless, deep meditation

Twice a day, morning and evening

Favoring the mantra

“Flurry of thoughts/images”

Restlessness“Cosmic bliss”

“Nothing”Physical discomfort

Losing the mantra

Easily repeat the mantra inside


Find a comfortable chair to sit on, uprightor sit on your bed, with back support

Allow your yes to be closed and wait for abouta minute. Notice your thoughts without minding them


Gently introduce the mantra (see next pages). Do not locate itin any part of your body. Say the mantra, “listen to it” in arepetition.

Loose the mantraOnce you realise you are no longer repeating the mantra,come back to it easily.

The meditation session is over after 20 minutes.Make sure you leave 3 to 5 minutes at the end before youget up and resume your activities.Do this twice a day, preferably before breakfast and before supper

Mantra option # 1– ‘Maranatha’ (ma-ra-na-tha)

“He who testifies to these things says,’Yes, I am coming soon’.

Amen. Come, Lord Jesus”(Maranatha)

Exodus, 22:20

Mantra option #2 – ‘I am’ (ayam)

“God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM"; and He said, "Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, I AM has sent me to you.”

Exodus, 3:14



“Flurry of thoughts/images”

Restlessness “Cosmic bliss”

“Nothing”

Twice a day, morning and evening

Easily coming back to the mantra

Physical discomfort

Losing the mantra

Ma-ra-na-tha Ayam

The goal is not to stay on the mantra.

The goal is to follow the simple procedure of

thinking the mantra, losing it, and coming back to

it when you find you have lost it. When you come

back to it, come back to a level that is comfortable,

not straining for either a clear or fuzzy pronunciation

Experiences during meditation – the “scenery”

Easily repeating the mantra inside

What is progress?

Experiences during meditation do not constitute progress… practices do…

Results are measured in the quality of everyday life

5 minute practice…

Ma-ra-na-tha…

Ayam…

What meditation IS

What meditation IS

We are polishing our mind’s mirror(see next page)

The mind as a mirror

``All of us, with our unveiled faces like mirrors reflecting the glory of the Lord, are beingtransformed into the image that we reflect in brighter and brighter glory;

this is the working of the Lord who is the Spirit” (2 Corinthians 3:18)

What meditation IS

“Now we see but a dim reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.”

1 Corinthians 13:12

What meditation IS

“Anyone who wishes to be a follower of mine must leave self behind”Matthew 16:24

What meditation is NOT

An escape fromeveryday life

Consciously stoppingone’s thoughts

« Navel gazing »

A meditation group at Cedar Park?

When: 4 Sundays, 11:45 – 12:15Where: CPU lounge or annex (downstairs)

meditation lunch and learn stillness in the centre

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