What Does It Mean to Be Mindful?
Christians have a tough time with mental health. I think we sometimes put this stigma out there that to be a Christian means not to struggle with your thoughts and that isn’t true. John 16:33 says, “I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” Jesus didn’t say “your life as my follower will be perfect and nothing will ever get to you.” He said you will have trouble in this world but don’t worry about it because HE has overcome it. We have to remember that putting our faith in Jesus when it comes to our mental health sometimes means seeking help from others trained to help.
But let’s take a step back and see how mindfulness can help you in your everyday struggles.
What is Mindfulness?
Mindfulness is awareness, without judgment, of life as it is, yourself as you are, other people as they are, in the here and now. Examples of mindfulness include:
Mindful eating: which means when eating you notice every flavor you are tasting. There are no thoughts of “is this food good or bad for me.”
Mindful movement: when listening to music, you dance and experience each note instead of wondering if you look graceful or foolish.
Mindful feelings: when thinking about someone you love you pay attention to exactly what that love feels like. You dive into the experience with full awareness that you are diving in.
Mindful walking is when you are walking you are actually walking. It means showing up to yourself where you are. You are aware of your feelings about your surroundings, your thoughts about your surroundings, how everything looks, and the sensations of each foot setting down with each step.
The goal of living mindfully is meeting each moment of life as it presents itself, with full awareness, letting our judgments fall away. Psalms 37:7 tells us to “Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; do not fret when people succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes.” Most people live life by doing multiple things at once and this is seen by our society as being efficient, productive, or smart. But in reality, we are so caught up in our thoughts and feelings about the past or the future that we are disconnected so from our present.
How Did We Get Here?
Sometimes living without awareness was developed through necessity and a way to limit the pain of being fully aware. We do this to avoid painful thoughts, feelings, and situations when we are afraid or angry or ashamed or sad because we’re convinced that we can’t do anything to change them and because we’re convinced we can’t stand to live with them.
Imagine a person who has gone through repeated trauma in their life. Every time that trauma presents itself, they learned to detach a little bit more from their reality in order to save themselves the pain of what is really going on. In the moment it allows them to not internalize the trauma they are experiencing but in the long-term it becomes a way to deal with any uncomfortable situation even if it is just an opportunity for growth.
As I said, mindfulness is awareness, without judgment, of life as it is, yourself as you are, other people as they are, in the here and now, via direct and immediate experience. When you are mindful, you are awake to life on its terms. You are fully alive to each moment as it arrives, as it is, and as it ends. Isaiah 26:3 says “You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you.” In order to build and maintain mindfulness it requires specific skills that are practiced over and over.
Mindfulness is a skill like anything else and it can be learned and perfected through practice. The practice of mindfulness is “the repetitive act of directing attention to only one thing in this one moment.” If that sounds simple to you, my answer is that it is harder than it sounds. The reason for this kind of practice is to gain control of your attention.
I like to remind myself and my clients that what we focus on is what we attract and see more of in any given moment. “The repetitive act of directing your attention to only one thing in this one moment” means training your brain to pay attention to what you choose to pay attention to instead of letting your mind take over and do what it wants. How do we practice mindfulness as it pertains to being a Christian? My answer is contemplative prayer.
What is contemplative prayer?
Contemplation is the practice of being fully present. We combine that with prayer which is a command given to us numerous times in the bible. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 tells us to “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” Contemplative prayer is a way to be present with God through the use of meditation meant to help stop anxious, fearful, and cluttered thoughts that can cause feelings of overwhelm and can steal our peace. It’s a way of using scripture to focus on the here and now. It’s a way to practice being present and staying in the moment. And it’s a way to build a place to connect and hear from God. Done daily, contemplative prayer is a practice of deep listening and connection with God.
Contemplative prayer is about gentleness. When your mind tries to wander or drift, bring it back to the presence with gentleness and grace.
I like to think of my mind as a sky and my thoughts as clouds. Very rarely is the sky completely clear and that’s ok; clouds are not inherently bad. This is the same with our mind. Our goal is not to clear our mind or to have no thoughts but instead our goal is not to get so caught up on the clouds that we lose the focus on the sky. So our goal is to learn to let the thoughts go by; to just let them float about and focus on the presence of God and the scripture you choose.
Sometimes you may have inspirational or creative thoughts you feel may be God-inspired but remember, if God truly inspired them, they will come back. Our ultimate goal is to empty your worries and cares and be in the presence of God and to just be.
Let's Practice This
I’m going to “walk you through” a sample of contemplative prayer and here’s how I’d like you to use it. Read through this next section before attempting this. You are more than welcome to record yourself speaking these instructions for yourself to listen to. I find that having a voice to guide me and keep me on task can be helpful. For the purpose of this blog, I have chosen a verse to focus on but you can choose a different one when you make your recording. Let’s get to it.
(To listen to my recording of this contemplative prayer, click here.)
Time To Start
First, get into a comfortable position and close your eyes. The goal of this first part of our exercise is to teach you to manage the energy in your body and prepare your mind for contemplation. Start by slowing down your breathing which will slow your heart rate and help control your energy.
I want you to imagine how big your lungs are. Your lungs span from your chest down into your stomach and to take a full breath means expanding both your chest and stomach. So, as you breathe think about filling your lungs completely and filling all the space available with fresh oxygen. As you are sitting there nice and tall and relaxed slowly inhale for 5 seconds filling every space in your lungs and then slowly exhale for 7 seconds. Its ok if you can’t breathe that slowly at first just work on making your inhale and exhale longer each time.
Inhale…2…3…4…5…Exhale…2…3…4…5…6…7…
Inhale…2…3…4…5…Exhale…2…3…4…5…6…7…
Inhale…2…3…4…5…Exhale…2…3…4…5…6…7…
Inhale…2…3…4…5…Exhale…2…3…4…5…6…7…
Continue breathing this way on your own for a few more moments.
Remember to keep your breathing slow and controlled.
Count to 5 on your inhale and 7 on your exhale.
If you get distracted, bring your focus back to your breath.
Imagine the sky in your mind and allow your thoughts to flow through like clouds. They are not important. Only your breath is important.
Our world calls us to always be doing, always be producing, never still… but God calls you to be still.
Inhale…2…3…4…5…Exhale…2…3…4…5…6…7…
As you sit there in stillness, turn your focus to scripture.
Jesus tells us in John 16:33 “I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
Think only on that verse.
Inhale…2…3…4…5…Exhale…2…3…4…5…6…7…
When your mind tries to wander, bring it back to your breath and remind yourself of Jesus’ words. He has overcome the world.
Inhale…2…3…4…5…Exhale…2…3…4…5…6…7…
Whatever you are going through pales in comparison to what he has in store for you.
Inhale…2…3…4…5…Exhale…2…3…4…5…6…7…
“I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
Inhale…2…3…4…5…Exhale…2…3…4…5…6…7…
Now, ask God to reveal to you what he would like you to take away from today or what he is trying to speak to you.
Inhale…2…3…4…5…Exhale…2…3…4…5…6…7…
These final few minutes are for you to listen to what God has in store for you.
Take the next few minutes to sit still and listen.
When you feel you are ready, say a prayer of thanks for God meeting you where you are today and open your eyes.
Take a few minutes to write down what you have discovered today.
As I said, this is meant to be done daily to improve the connection you are creating with God. We sometimes forget to listen when we are caught up in our prayers. We ask, we speak, we give thanks, but then we don’t stop to listen. Here’s your sign to listen. I hope you enjoyed this practice.
What would you like to get out of contemplative prayer?
Much love and blessings,
Rachael
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