Day 6 - Meditation and Breathing

I think it is safe to say that in all types of meditation, we are asked to think about our breathing.  Each breath we are given is God’s gift.

 “It is in Him that we live and move and have our being”  (Acts 17:28)

We need to pay attention to our breathing.  Our stressful lives cause us to breathe rather shallowly in the upper chest area.  If we can learn to breathe deeply using our diaphragms, we can get more oxygen to our tissues and become more relaxed.

How do your shoulders feel right now?  They are always a give away for tension.  Shrug them up towards your ears and then lower them down very very slowly while breathing out.
Now, if you can, lie down for a few minutes, with a pillow under your thigh/knee area.  Notice where you are breathing.  Is it the upper part of your chest?  Maybe you could place a small folded towel on your upper stomach.  See if it rises and falls with your breathing.  Try and enhance that movement by breathing in a little longer and letting the towel rise, and then breathing out for as long as you can and letting your stomach(towel) collapse towards your backbone.  Try this for 2-3 breaths.

As you begin to get the idea of this deeper breathing, perhaps you could say the “Jesus Prayer”  Breathing in say “Jesus, son of David” and breathing out “have mercy on me a sinner”  By the way, breathing out should always take a little longer than breathing in.

Learning to breathe properly is one of the best and simple things that you can do for your body.  It promotes relaxation.  As we grow calmer, we can begin to listen to God’s voice and deepen our awareness of His love for us.
Rosemary Goodall


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The Purpose Driven Life - Finding Your Purpose

CHAPTER 6 - LIFE IS A TEMPORARY ASSIGNMENT

To make the best use of your life, you must never forget two truths:

1. Compared with eternity, life is extremely brief
2. Earth is only a temporary residence


Earth is not our final home; we were created for something much better. 

When life gets tough, when you're overwhelmed with doubt, or when you wonder if living for Christ is worth the effort, remember that you are not home yet. At death you won't leave home -- you'll go home!

Point to Ponder: The world is not my home.

Verse to Remember: "So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal." 2 Corinthians 4:18 (NIV)

Question to Consider: How should the fact that life on earth is just a temporary assignment change the way I am living right now?