A Christian Meditation on Making Solitude a Habit from Matthew 1:35

<p>When you wake up in the morning, if you immediately go to your phone, you immediately go to your social media, you immediately check your email, or you immediately start reading the news or turn on the morning news shows on TV — the first thing you’re doing in the day is to download the weight of a very stress-filled and anger-filled world, and you are stressed and depressed by noon. If you wake up in the morning, and immediately surrender your central nervous system to the cacophony of modern life, and then you're off and running — you’ve already surrendered your day to a thought system based on anger and fear and insecurity that dominates this world.</p><p><br></p><p><strong>If your podcast app is set to skip the silent sections, disable that for this podcast.</strong></p><p><br></p><p>This is a time to get away from all the min distractions — all the focus distractions — of your phone and social media and scrolling through email or the news. This is a quiet time to re-integrate and re-calibrate your soul — mind, body and spirit — with the life-giving presence of God’s Spirit. That’s the purpose of Christian meditation.</p><p><br></p><p>Let’s begin by lying flat on your back or, if it’s more practical for you at this point, sit comfortably in a chair. Uncross your legs. Close your eyes.</p><p><br></p><p>And let's just take a deep breath. Let’s get a slow rhythm of breathing started to calm your mind and body and put your body and mind in a disposition to be able to sense, using your biblically guided imagination, the presence of God’s Spirit. God‘s presence with you and in you.</p><p><br></p><p>With each breath focus your mind on relaxing the muscles in your whole body a little bit more— especially with each exhale. Feeling your muscles soften. Feeling tension release throughout your body. And focusing your mind’s attention on feeling the sensation — the subtle sensation — of your body letting go of effort. Relaxing. Your body feeling heavier as it gives in to gravity. Becoming more calm. Your mind becoming