I have another post from Caleb to share with you today. You can check out his previous posts here. Enjoy!
“His delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night” (Psalm 1:2, ESV).
I recently heard again the definition of the word meditation literally as “ruminating” on Scripture. My professor was encouraging us to ruminate on Scripture, to chew it over, just as a cow chews on its cud. Interestingly, I had already been working with this concept in another realm: anxious thoughts. It struck me that the same thing we should not be doing with unhealthy thoughts (ruminating on them) is precisely what the Lord commands us to do with His Word.
Let me preface by saying that I am no perfect example of doing this with Scripture. I am a very good example of ruminating on everything but Scripture, and that is probably why I feel like writing this article. Nevertheless, as Delie pointed out in a previous blog post, the Word of God still ought to be shared even when we are not the best practitioners of it. May we all strive toward this ideal together.
As one who is prone to dwell on anxious or sad thoughts, I have had to watch carefully when I spend an extended amount of time on one thought. I have been encouraged to always question whether my thought is working towards a solution or whether it is just a “rumination.” Am I problem-solving or just spinning my wheels, making myself more anxious and helpless in the process? This is a constant risk for someone like me. Anxious thoughts can strike at any moment, from any occasion. Whether I am thinking about some theological question I cannot answer, the tasks I have ahead of me in the morning, or that recent phone call I had with someone, I can easily turn these innocent musings into ruminations. What if I get behind on my homework? What if I didn’t respond kindly or directly enough to that person on the phone? Anxiety therapists talk about a core fear that often drives such ruminations, and it can be helpful to (briefly) explore and challenge that core fear before proceeding with any more ruminations.
With Scripture it is entirely different. God invites, even commands, us to ruminate on His Word. For it is there He gives Himself to us. Only in the pages of the Bible can we find God’s speech to us. This encounter with the Triune God in Scripture works faith in us to believe what is written (Romans 10:17) and is our source of life (Psalm 119:25, 50; John 6:63) and sanctification (John 17:17).
The beautiful thing about Scripture is that it is safe to ruminate on. I love thinking, and spending lots of time doing so, whether in my head or out loud with someone else. Amidst all these land mines from anxious ruminations, it is so comforting to walk the path of Scripture by making it my rumination. I am not there yet. Indeed, none of us will ever “arrive” at this point in this life. As such, there needs to be no despair of Christ’s grace and forgiveness for our lack of Scripture meditation. Rather, I hope you and I can rejoice in this reality, that Scripture is good for us.
Scripture may not always make sense to us in the moment. It can and should sometimes even convict us of our sin, killing us and showing our need for forgiveness. Nevertheless, it is safe to say that Scripture, unlike all my anxious ruminations, is “true . . .honorable . . . just . . . pure . . . lovely . . . commendable . . . excellen[t] . . . [and] worthy of praise” (see Philippians 4:8). After all, it contains the Gospel, the message that gives salvation! As such, while we replace anxiety with prayer and thanksgiving (Philippians 4:6), let us take comfort in the Word of God and think on it. May God’s peace be with you.
Coram Mundo 