How we focus our attention

[halbhh]

But those who wait upon the LORD will renew their strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not faint.

One way to wait upon the Lord, such as in prayer or just pure waiting, requires us to be less noisy, less distracted by our own thoughts or the thoughts of others.

So that our attention might turn to better things, to the 'things of God'.

Romans 8:26 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.

And to seek the Lord.

And to become quiet at times, and wait on Him, seek Him....

“Silence is not the exile of speech. It is the love of the one Word.”
—Robert Cardinal Sarah

We live in a very noisy world today.

Modern Christians then must go against the cultural tide and stop watching/listening/reading to so much talk shows, news, commentators, and so on.

Do you turn to the Lord each day, and focus on Him, first, last, centrally?

John 16:33 I have told you these things so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take courage; I have overcome the world!"

More:
What Does the Bible Say About Trusting God?

An interesting article about an anxious (somewhat common) wrong form of curiosity, but also with some deep quotes, such as the Cardinal Sarah quote above:

Saving Silence

Sarah has a particular way of speaking, but it's wonderful really, even though so particular.
When he drapes himself in silence, as God himself dwells in a great silence, man is close to heaven, or, rather, he allows God to manifest himself in him… At the heart of man there is an innate silence, for God abides in the innermost part of every person. God is silence, and this divine silence dwells in man.

 

[Ben Dhyan]

But those who wait upon the LORD will renew their strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not faint.

One way to wait upon the Lord, such as in prayer or just pure waiting, requires us to be less noisy, less distracted by our own thoughts or the thoughts of others.

So that our attention might turn to better things, to the 'things of God'.

Romans 8:26 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.

And to seek the Lord.

And to become quiet at times, and wait on Him, seek Him....

“Silence is not the exile of speech. It is the love of the one Word.”
—Robert Cardinal Sarah

We live in a very noisy world today.

Modern Christians then must go against the cultural tide and stop watching/listening/reading to so much talk shows, news, commentators, and so on.

Do you turn to the Lord each day, and focus on Him, first, last, centrally?

John 16:33 I have told you these things so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take courage; I have overcome the world!"

More:
What Does the Bible Say About Trusting God?

An interesting article about an anxious (somewhat common) wrong form of curiosity, but also with some deep quotes, such as the Cardinal Sarah quote above:

Saving Silence

Sarah has a particular way of speaking, but it's wonderful really, even though so particular.
When he drapes himself in silence, as God himself dwells in a great silence, man is close to heaven, or, rather, he allows God to manifest himself in him… At the heart of man there is an innate silence, for God abides in the innermost part of every person. God is silence, and this divine silence dwells in man.

I would say meditation is the way, still mind meditation. When the mind is still, the personal thinking 'I' is not present to disturb the underlying awesome presence of what and who we really are. I would mention two biblical quotes that indirectly provide a logical reason for realizing the underlying presence of our being.

1 Corinthians 6:19 Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own;

1 Corinthians 2:9-10 “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived” — the things God has prepared for those who love him — for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.

So if we self identify wholly with our physical body, it is not the divine spirit. No amount of conceiving, thinking, pondering will glorify God, only being born again of the spirit will. We must still the thinking mind to become one with the divine spirit within, it is the source of what and who we really are.

It is not easy, for as Jesus explained Matthew 7:13 -14 “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few."

 

[halbhh]

I would say meditation is the way, still mind meditation. When the mind is still, the personal thinking 'I' is not present to disturb the underlying awesome presence of what and who we really are. I would mention two biblical quotes that indirectly provide a logical reason for realizing the underlying presence of our being.

1 Corinthians 6:19 Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own;

1 Corinthians 2:9-10 “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived” — the things God has prepared for those who love him — for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.

So if we self identify wholly with our physical body, it is not the divine spirit. No amount of conceiving, thinking, pondering will glorify God, only being born again of the spirit will. We must still the thinking mind to become one with the divine spirit within, it is the source of what and who we really are.

It is not easy, for as Jesus explained Matthew 7:13 -14 “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few."

Yes, those are good thoughts. Being meditative we are better able to pay attention to the Spirit, and notice better our own state of soul (whether we might need to repent of something, or feel pulled towards something we are to do).

Matthew 7 ESV is a very important chapter, and the narrow way that is harder, as you read, is in part about verse 12, yes, and yet more also, as we learn in the chapter, culminating in the powerful message of verses 21-27. That we not only want (due to faith) to listen to Christ's words in the gospels He taught for us to hear -- with 'ears that hear' -- but also to then do as He said, so that we can make it.

 

[Ben Dhyan]

Yes, those are good thoughts. Being meditative we are better able to pay attention to the Spirit, and notice better our own state of soul (whether we might need to repent of something, or feel pulled towards something we are to do).

Matthew 7 ESV is a very important chapter, and the narrow way that is harder, as you read, is in part about verse 12, yes, and yet more also, as we learn in the chapter, culminating in the powerful message of verses 21-27. That we not only want (due to faith) to listen to Christ's words in the gospels He taught for us to hear -- with 'ears that hear' -- but also to then do as He said, so that we can make it.

Yes, thank you for drawing attention to the connection of Matthew 7:12 with the narrow gate.