Spiritual and Emotional Wellness

The Dynamic of Biblical Meditation in Emotionally Healthy Spirituality.



One of the keys to transformation is biblical meditation. Meditation is becoming increasingly popular in the Western world and is often referred to as “spiritual” meditation , which is not to be confused with biblical meditation. Rather than spending time on discussing what biblical meditation is not, I chose rather to describe what it is.

Before I do I would like to point out that mindful awareness of which meditation is one method, has been scientifically proven to enhance our physical, mental, and social well being.

Meditate- means, “to engage in deep mental exercise directed toward a heightened level of spiritual awareness.” (Webster’s New Explorer Dictionary.)

Biblical is a reference to “God’s Word.”

Therefore biblical meditation is using the bible to engage in deep mental exercise directed toward a heightened level of spiritual awareness. This practice is not only spiritually beneficial, but according to scientific evidence it should also benefit our physical, mental and social well- being.

Before engaging in biblical meditation it is important to pray for the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

Why biblical meditation you may ask? My response to this question is because the bible is the word of God and is sufficient to fill the heart with all that is needed for living. Psalm 119 is devoted to praising the virtues, merits, and sufficiency of the Word of God and demonstrates the author’s total commitment to it. One verse that is representative of all 176 verses in this Psalm, is verse 11: Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.

To hide the Word of God in our hearts is to be totally captivated by it, committed to it, and controlled through it. Further, to hide God’s Word in the heart is to recognize that it is sufficient to fill that heart with all that is needed for living. It is also important for us to know why we believe the bible and what is the biblical view of truth before we engage in the practice of meditation.

Why do we believe the Bible?

(2 Tim. 3:16; 2 Peter 1:21)

The Christian claim that the Bible is inerrant and infallible is not a claim that all of our opinions and interpretations are infallible. Rather the text itself is.

The Biblical view of truth

(John 8:31, 32; 17:17).

Why does it matter?

Example: The Bible says, “God is love.” This is a statement about God, not about how my idea of God makes me feel.

This matters because truth sets us free and lies enslave!

There are also experiential ,historical , philosophical and scientific evidence to support the Bible’s claim.


Psalms 1:1-3 David “delighted in” the word of God and “meditated on it day and night.”

Peter Scazzero gives an excellent example of biblical meditation as technique.

I encourage you to practice this exercise until it becomes a habit in your life. It is a helpful skill for the art of biblical meditation.

“And I’d like to invite you to listen deeply to the voice of God as we meditate. We will use the Scripture, “He guides me in paths of righteousness for his namesake.” And when we come to these words of the Bible, we’re not speed-reading. It’s not like reading the paper in the morning. We’ll let the words of God wash over our soul. I’m going to read it three or four or five times. And you may want to keep your eyes open. You may want to close them. You can look at the text or just close your eyes and listen. And you want to let God bring to you, to make alive to you, a phrase or a word. It may be the word “guide.” It may be that you see God pulling you, guiding you. Or “He guides me in paths of righteousness.” You may be contemplating the words “paths of righteousness.” Wow, God’s got a path for me. It’s a path of righteousness. It’s not a superhighway. Maybe you’ll see it as a narrow path in the woods. But it’s a path he’s got for me. He guides me! And maybe the word “me.” You’re that important. You need to know that you’re so important that He guides you! And you really feel the love of God. You may think, I don’t know where I’m going, but he’s got something for me! He’s going to guide me in a path. Me. “Me” is what you’re going to be and what you’re going to get. God’s going to just stop you on that one. Or maybe “for his namesake.” God’s so concerned about his name and his glory that He’s going to get this through my thick skull! And maybe this is to be for his namesake. So let God, the Holy Spirit just lead you into pondering one phrase. But question - What does God have for you today from of this message in this text behind me? So I invite you to close your eyes, if you like. Keep them open if you want to look at the text or go back and forth to Psalm 23 in your Bible, and let these words wash over you. “He guides me in paths of righteousness for his namesake.” “He guides me in paths of righteousness for his namesake.” Listen to the text again and notice where you receive - what you hear; where it touches you as you open yourself up to receive God in the depth of your being. “He guides me in paths of righteousness for his namesake.” As I read it again, let whatever God’s doing inside of you with this passage continue - interact with God, talk to God about your concerns or your conflicts or your worries, your ideas. “He guides me in paths of righteousness for his namesake.” As I read it this last time, just rest in God’s embrace and love for you that this is true for you, even you, through the grace and mercy of Jesus. “He guides me in paths ofrighteousness for His namesake.”

This technique can be used with any verse in the bible that you would like to meditate upon.

In my next post we will explore , “emotional brokenness.”