Christian Meditation
I attended a new kind of church in the Mission district of San Francisco. The pastor was a self-identified "Christian Mystic" who was speaking about yoga, meditation, and Eastern philosophies of Being, to an audience of mid-20's seekers.
Here's What He Said, It was so interesting.
He describe his practice of reading a piece of Scripture and meditating on it for 20 minutes in the morning. He firmly believes meditation and yoga are baseless if the goal is simply to unattach. God made us to be attached with Him and one another. By going to his Sanctuary within, this pastor roots himself to God and lives from a place of peace within. He seeks to experience scripture rather than simply intellectually digest it.
I Tried It and Here's What Happened
I've been trying it on just before my meditation practice and it's been wonderful. I love how Proverbs 4:18 in particular encourages me to be an example for all in my life of going forward with purpose first. My verse the past couple weeks has been:
Proverbs 4:18 The path of the righteous is like the morning sun, shining ever brighter till the full light of day.
A Personal Update
With my very busy lifestyle as a full-time Master's student, 7th grade social studies teacher, Podcast CEO/Host/Director/Manager, and extracurricular enthusiast I've been relying on habits to clear cognitive space, prime me for wakefulness and sleep, and holistically be kind to my health.
In the morning I'm focused on getting my mind, body, and spirit right before the day starts - I make my bed, take a cold shower, meditate, read my daily devotional, do yoga, and bike to school. I'm so thankful for my girlfriend Noknoi in Thailand who calls me every morning at 5:15 am to ensure I wake up and talks with me on my half hour bike ride to school.
I have the same nightly routine
My nightly routine consists of - organize my bag the night before, decide what I will wear, packing my lunch, making my breakfast shake, take a shower, apply sesame oil (as prescribed by an Indian ayurveda doctor), and complete my nightly 5-minute Journal before saying a prayer, and falling asleep to a Sleep Story on my Calm meditation app.