My biggest takeaway from the video came when you pointed out the relationship between Biblical meditation (1:50) and memorizing the Bible. I can’t believe that I’ve missed that obvious connection all this time.
Thank you Darryl. I had considered this concept as well. One thing that helped me was to realize that the English word “mindful” does appear in some translations, such as KJV. Strongs H2142, G3403, G3421. I realized I could allow God’s Word to define “Mindfulness” for me, so that it’s mention will draw me back to Truth.
Psalm 1:1-2 (NJV): Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, nor stand on the path of sinners, nor sit in the seat of scoffers. But his delight is in the Torah of יהוה, on his Torah he meditates day and night.
I really admire your work! But I respectfully disagree with some of your points: About treating the symptoms and not the cause: why would that be a problem? Many methods of medicine are to treat the symptoms, not the cause. An anesthetic treats a pain, but not the cause of the pain, but that's not a demerit for anesthesia. In fact, sometimes symptom-treatment resources make it possible to improve quality of life so that the individual can engage in treating the cause via other methods. If a Christian uses mindfulness in the belief that it treats the cause of a sin, I do agree with you, but in this case the problem lies with the foolishness of the Christian, not the technique. I believe that the problem lies in considering that 100% of the time "thoughts" are the same thing as "sinful thoughts, and the sinful inner faculty that Christ denounces as the root of our problem". I don't believe that there is a symmetry between the thoughts that mindfulness proposes to deal with and what Christ wants to change in us. For example, many people struggle with thoughts that are symptoms of anxiety or intrusive thoughts, or conditions like OCD. These are conditions that affect the way someone thinks, and do not relate to that person's sinful nature. Mindfulness can be a tool for dealing with these kinds of thoughts, without necessarily going into the order of treating the "thoughts that highlight our sins". For example, if a person suffers from an anxiety disorder, and has accelerated thinking, mindfulness can be a tool to slow them down. This example doesn't even go into the moral field of thought, but rather a tool to treat a sick functioning mechanism. We all agree that sin has changed the way we think. And only Christ deals with that. I repeat, if a Christian believes that the solution to his sins is mindfulness, I believe that the problem lies in this Christian's irresponsibility. However, my proposal is that mindfulness can be useful both as a tool for dealing with some psychological conditions and for providing quality of life while we seek help. In this regard, a provocative question: what is the difference between treating sin and treating the symptom of sin? Because if sin is dealt with only by Jesus, is EVERYTHING we do the treatment of symptoms? In this case, couldn't EVERYTHING be a tool of Christ to help against sin? As long as we are aware of what sin is and what it is a tool for, and what the real solution is? Finally, if people who don't know Christ use mindfulness to deal with problems that we believe are the result of sin, why would that be an argument against mindfulness? They do it with everything the world has to offer, not just mindfulness. If we were to criticize everything the world tries to use as a solution to sin, we wouldn't be able to experience anything anymore. I Love watching your videos, I've learned a lot so far. I hope I've contributed with my point of view. Of course, I may be wrong, and I need to do more research on the subject. I appreciate the attention of those who have read this far.
One last point I forgot to mention: the practice of biblical meditation is not the same thing as mindfulness. Because they have similar topographies, we shouldn't consider them to be the same. Even less should we consider their objectives to be the same. It's perfectly possible to meditate on the Lord and enjoy the benefits of another practice, with another objective, called mindfulness. God bless you! And I am open to hear other perspectives :)
Thanks for your feedback! I appreciate the tone you've taken here and your line of comment. Thank you! It is difficult to respond to all your points here, but here are a few responses: 1. Anxiety, and OCD can be traced to unbiblical thought patterns. We are expressly forbidden by Christ (and Paul) from being anxious. Biblical counseling can help with these things. I'm not sure what you mean by "intrusive thoughts" but we do have agency and can control our thoughts - though it might not always feel that way. So I think there are better solutions to these than mindfulness. I can suggest some good (biblical) books on these subjects if you're interested. 2. Psychology starts with assumptions about what it means to be human and what man's problems are, and treats symptoms from this perspective. These assumptions are not assumptions we get from scripture. They stand on a secular foundation. To this end, Biblically, sin is not merely something we do, it is intrinsic to the human condition after the fall, it corrupts our thinking, feeling and volition. 3. The argument I'm trying to make here (despite the thumbnail) is that mindfulness is insufficient to deal with our problems because our problems are deeper than psychology is willing acknowledge. For those outside of Christ the hope they need is in Christ, not in techniques to help them cope with their fallen condition better. We should be wary of recommending a superficial solution to those outside of Christ, when our problem is significantly more than superficial. I hope that helps. Thanks again for your comment!
@@bma Thank you very much for your reply too! Indeed, that's a lot of points haha I'll be happy to read the material you suggest! I'll leave my recommendation here too, especially on your first point about unbiblical thought patterns: "A Quiet Mind to Suffer With: Mental Illness, Trauma, and the Death of Christ" by John Andrew Bryant. Cheers!
It seems I'm always wrestling with mental battles. The flesh wants what it wants, but the spirit knows better. Mindfulness will not help me; only the Holy Spirit can -- the One I offend regularly. "Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Thy sight, oh Lord, my strength, and my redeemer." Ps. 19:14
When I was a teenager, through my late 20s (became a Christian at 29 now am 60) I practiced meditation, but I found it weakened me, making me less tolerant in difficult times.
@@jamesbarringer2737 I mean I know old yogis sitting in Himalayas in 30 degrees on a under wear meditating there for days with no food and they are still alive and active and I do it as well It improves focused if done correctly it's not about for how much time U did it for it's about how U did i
Grace of Divine Love Knowledge Joy Peace is the key to open the gates of His Kingdom, it is like His constant invitation, He gives us His key to open the gates, He makes us His Son, Brother, Friend, Sister, Wife, Bride, Daughter, Himself, because He gives everything to everybody, His Grace is infinite, only human receptivity is limited, with time even this will change thanks to His Grace❤🙏
Joel Beeke and Donald Whitney have written a lot about meditation from the puritan perspective. Whitney even took the idea of mind mapping and applied it to meditation. He maps a Bible verse and turns it into what he calls a meditation map.
@bma A few minutes before I clicked on the video, I had thought about Mindfulness and the fact that I have repeatedly dismissed the practice without checking it out, and maybe I should take a look at it before saying, "I don't need that. Meditating on Scripture and prayer are all I need." Then I opened RUclips, and your video was right there on the first screen! Thanks for the video. You confirmed what I suspected. Thanks, Darryl!
And if meditation is allowing u to avoid bad thought it is a good thing i mean i know a lot of people and lot of people kill themselves because of stress and anxiety it is not reducing us as a human we would think more good thing like helping other improvement yourself and more good things
Mindfulness is Buddhism. And, it has been adopted by the APA as a recognized therapy for Borderline Personality Disorder. The results are, to say the least, disappointing.
Thank you for helping many understand bc this is a dangerous practice. A huge problem is sadly many Christians do not understand what is biblically pleasing to God. People can research what can actually happens to those who practice the "emptying of the mind" meditation. Once people reach the place of nothingness, blackness it is hard to return or not possible to reverse it. I've heard those that reach this place, every time they close their eyes the black nothingness is there and Christ is not there. Some devolop suicide thoughts. An acquaintance experienced this and was trapped by it. She's a believer, who at the time was involved in spirituality practices in a deep breathing and mind emptying class. She ended up having to pray for 6mos with her eyes open and received prayer from a Christian organization that helped her. I heard it got better but I don't know if she was able to escape it completely. She shared article warnings online about this mindless goal being irreversible!! Before she left the class, she tired to warn those in her breathing class about had happened to her, she said they didn't believe it could happen to them. 🌿👑🌿
It seems to me that the main thrust of your criticism is that mindfulness meditation is not explicitly mentioned in the Bible as something Christians should do therefore it's bad personally I disagree with this sentiment because a lot of good things are not mentioned in the Bible but that doesn't mean they're bad for example cars aren't mentioned in the Bible but that doesn't mean it's sinful to drive a car.
@@joshj8982 well that's how it came across to me I watched this video twice and this is just my interpretation of the video if you think my interpretation is wrong tell me why instead of trying to attack my character.
😂😂 you gnostics crack me up. It is the same play, no matter who or where you are found, "You made me feel bad because you pointed out I am arguing fallaciously! Help me! Im a victim!" Kids, dont do gnosticism. It fries your brain to the point where all you can do is argue fallaciously and play the victim. The Bible calls this a seared conscience.
@@joshj8982 interesting so you think I'm a gnostic what gave you that impression it's because I'm a Christian and I disagree with you or is it something more interesting.
Clearly you disagree lol. If you are a christian, I am a knight in King Arthurs court. The christian would do as the good brother in this video rightly taught, and fill themselves with the Word of God (see Bible for myriad references) and dwell on that and what it says to do. Philippians 4:6-9 (and myriad other passages). Have a blessed day. Jesus is King, and HIS word (not gnostic teachings and beliefs) will judge man in the last day. Again, be blessed.
The mind of Christ is a good thing... all else is highly suspect & in the very least. Besides staring at your belly button is kinda hard; for some more than others.
When I hear a British accent talking about Christian topics on YT, I generally think "deist undercooked scholastic antiChrist" This was a good teaching though, God Bless, "Biblical Meditation is filling, not emptying"
My biggest takeaway from the video came when you pointed out the relationship between Biblical meditation (1:50) and memorizing the Bible. I can’t believe that I’ve missed that obvious connection all this time.
Thank you Darryl. I had considered this concept as well. One thing that helped me was to realize that the English word “mindful” does appear in some translations, such as KJV. Strongs H2142, G3403, G3421. I realized I could allow God’s Word to define “Mindfulness” for me, so that it’s mention will draw me back to Truth.
Psalm 1:1-2 (NJV):
Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, nor stand on the path of sinners, nor sit in the seat of scoffers. But his delight is in the Torah of יהוה, on his Torah he meditates day and night.
Thank you, for the knowledge!❤
I really admire your work! But I respectfully disagree with some of your points:
About treating the symptoms and not the cause: why would that be a problem? Many methods of medicine are to treat the symptoms, not the cause. An anesthetic treats a pain, but not the cause of the pain, but that's not a demerit for anesthesia. In fact, sometimes symptom-treatment resources make it possible to improve quality of life so that the individual can engage in treating the cause via other methods. If a Christian uses mindfulness in the belief that it treats the cause of a sin, I do agree with you, but in this case the problem lies with the foolishness of the Christian, not the technique.
I believe that the problem lies in considering that 100% of the time "thoughts" are the same thing as "sinful thoughts, and the sinful inner faculty that Christ denounces as the root of our problem". I don't believe that there is a symmetry between the thoughts that mindfulness proposes to deal with and what Christ wants to change in us. For example, many people struggle with thoughts that are symptoms of anxiety or intrusive thoughts, or conditions like OCD. These are conditions that affect the way someone thinks, and do not relate to that person's sinful nature. Mindfulness can be a tool for dealing with these kinds of thoughts, without necessarily going into the order of treating the "thoughts that highlight our sins". For example, if a person suffers from an anxiety disorder, and has accelerated thinking, mindfulness can be a tool to slow them down. This example doesn't even go into the moral field of thought, but rather a tool to treat a sick functioning mechanism.
We all agree that sin has changed the way we think. And only Christ deals with that. I repeat, if a Christian believes that the solution to his sins is mindfulness, I believe that the problem lies in this Christian's irresponsibility. However, my proposal is that mindfulness can be useful both as a tool for dealing with some psychological conditions and for providing quality of life while we seek help. In this regard, a provocative question: what is the difference between treating sin and treating the symptom of sin? Because if sin is dealt with only by Jesus, is EVERYTHING we do the treatment of symptoms? In this case, couldn't EVERYTHING be a tool of Christ to help against sin? As long as we are aware of what sin is and what it is a tool for, and what the real solution is?
Finally, if people who don't know Christ use mindfulness to deal with problems that we believe are the result of sin, why would that be an argument against mindfulness? They do it with everything the world has to offer, not just mindfulness. If we were to criticize everything the world tries to use as a solution to sin, we wouldn't be able to experience anything anymore.
I Love watching your videos, I've learned a lot so far. I hope I've contributed with my point of view. Of course, I may be wrong, and I need to do more research on the subject. I appreciate the attention of those who have read this far.
One last point I forgot to mention: the practice of biblical meditation is not the same thing as mindfulness. Because they have similar topographies, we shouldn't consider them to be the same. Even less should we consider their objectives to be the same. It's perfectly possible to meditate on the Lord and enjoy the benefits of another practice, with another objective, called mindfulness.
God bless you! And I am open to hear other perspectives :)
Thanks for your feedback! I appreciate the tone you've taken here and your line of comment. Thank you!
It is difficult to respond to all your points here, but here are a few responses:
1. Anxiety, and OCD can be traced to unbiblical thought patterns. We are expressly forbidden by Christ (and Paul) from being anxious. Biblical counseling can help with these things. I'm not sure what you mean by "intrusive thoughts" but we do have agency and can control our thoughts - though it might not always feel that way. So I think there are better solutions to these than mindfulness. I can suggest some good (biblical) books on these subjects if you're interested.
2. Psychology starts with assumptions about what it means to be human and what man's problems are, and treats symptoms from this perspective. These assumptions are not assumptions we get from scripture. They stand on a secular foundation. To this end, Biblically, sin is not merely something we do, it is intrinsic to the human condition after the fall, it corrupts our thinking, feeling and volition.
3. The argument I'm trying to make here (despite the thumbnail) is that mindfulness is insufficient to deal with our problems because our problems are deeper than psychology is willing acknowledge. For those outside of Christ the hope they need is in Christ, not in techniques to help them cope with their fallen condition better. We should be wary of recommending a superficial solution to those outside of Christ, when our problem is significantly more than superficial.
I hope that helps. Thanks again for your comment!
@@bma Thank you very much for your reply too! Indeed, that's a lot of points haha I'll be happy to read the material you suggest! I'll leave my recommendation here too, especially on your first point about unbiblical thought patterns: "A Quiet Mind to Suffer With: Mental Illness, Trauma, and the Death of Christ" by John Andrew Bryant. Cheers!
Thanks, Darryl! This is a helpful overview to send to those who ask about this stuff.
It seems I'm always wrestling with mental battles. The flesh wants what it wants, but the spirit knows better. Mindfulness will not help me; only the Holy Spirit can -- the One I offend regularly.
"Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Thy sight, oh Lord, my strength, and my redeemer." Ps. 19:14
Great video! Thank you!
When I was a teenager, through my late 20s (became a Christian at 29 now am 60) I practiced meditation, but I found it weakened me, making me less tolerant in difficult times.
Then u did it wrongly or u are showing something as cause which is not actually what the cause of Ur problems are and this video is misleading
@@jamesbarringer2737 i mean I heard that even Jesus did meditation soo I don't want U are talking about
@@jamesbarringer2737 and if had thought while doing then U didn't do it correctly
@@jamesbarringer2737 I mean I know old yogis sitting in Himalayas in 30 degrees on a under wear meditating there for days with no food and they are still alive and active and I do it as well It improves focused if done correctly it's not about for how much time U did it for it's about how U did i
Grace of Divine Love Knowledge Joy Peace
is the key to open the gates of His Kingdom,
it is like His constant invitation, He gives us His key to open the gates, He makes us His Son, Brother, Friend, Sister, Wife, Bride, Daughter, Himself, because He gives everything to everybody, His Grace is infinite, only human receptivity is limited, with time even this will change thanks to His Grace❤🙏
Your word I have treasured in my heart that I may not sin against you.
Joel Beeke and Donald Whitney have written a lot about meditation from the puritan perspective. Whitney even took the idea of mind mapping and applied it to meditation. He maps a Bible verse and turns it into what he calls a meditation map.
ἀλλὰ μεταμορφοῦσθε τῇ ἀνακαινώσει τοῦ νοός
but be transformed by the renewing of your mind - Rom 12:2
@bma A few minutes before I clicked on the video, I had thought about Mindfulness and the fact that I have repeatedly dismissed the practice without checking it out, and maybe I should take a look at it before saying, "I don't need that. Meditating on Scripture and prayer are all I need." Then I opened RUclips, and your video was right there on the first screen! Thanks for the video. You confirmed what I suspected. Thanks, Darryl!
Thank you so much
You're most welcome
And if meditation is allowing u to avoid bad thought it is a good thing i mean i know a lot of people and lot of people kill themselves because of stress and anxiety it is not reducing us as a human we would think more good thing like helping other improvement yourself and more good things
Good exposé. God bless !
I remember these topics!
Mindfulness is Buddhism. And, it has been adopted by the APA as a recognized therapy for Borderline Personality Disorder. The results are, to say the least, disappointing.
Thank you for helping many understand bc this is a dangerous practice. A huge problem is sadly many Christians do not understand what is biblically pleasing to God. People can research what can actually happens to those who practice the "emptying of the mind" meditation. Once people reach the place of nothingness, blackness it is hard to return or not possible to reverse it. I've heard those that reach this place, every time they close their eyes the black nothingness is there and Christ is not there. Some devolop suicide thoughts. An acquaintance experienced this and was trapped by it. She's a believer, who at the time was involved in spirituality practices in a deep breathing and mind emptying class. She ended up having to pray for 6mos with her eyes open and received prayer from a Christian organization that helped her. I heard it got better but I don't know if she was able to escape it completely. She shared article warnings online about this mindless goal being irreversible!! Before she left the class, she tired to warn those in her breathing class about had happened to her, she said they didn't believe it could happen to them. 🌿👑🌿
He got it all wrong.
It seems to me that the main thrust of your criticism is that mindfulness meditation is not explicitly mentioned in the Bible as something Christians should do therefore it's bad personally I disagree with this sentiment because a lot of good things are not mentioned in the Bible but that doesn't mean they're bad for example cars aren't mentioned in the Bible but that doesn't mean it's sinful to drive a car.
That is not what he said at all, and that is extremely obvious. Dont strawman what he said with arguments he never made.
@@joshj8982 well that's how it came across to me I watched this video twice and this is just my interpretation of the video if you think my interpretation is wrong tell me why instead of trying to attack my character.
😂😂 you gnostics crack me up. It is the same play, no matter who or where you are found, "You made me feel bad because you pointed out I am arguing fallaciously! Help me! Im a victim!"
Kids, dont do gnosticism. It fries your brain to the point where all you can do is argue fallaciously and play the victim. The Bible calls this a seared conscience.
@@joshj8982 interesting so you think I'm a gnostic what gave you that impression it's because I'm a Christian and I disagree with you or is it something more interesting.
Clearly you disagree lol.
If you are a christian, I am a knight in King Arthurs court.
The christian would do as the good brother in this video rightly taught, and fill themselves with the Word of God (see Bible for myriad references) and dwell on that and what it says to do. Philippians 4:6-9 (and myriad other passages).
Have a blessed day.
Jesus is King, and HIS word (not gnostic teachings and beliefs) will judge man in the last day.
Again, be blessed.
that is not an accurate description of what mindfullness is. at all.
Wait then why did jesus himself meditate to talk to god
Ruminate?
The mind of Christ is a good thing... all else is highly suspect & in the very least.
Besides staring at your belly button is kinda hard; for some more than others.
When I hear a British accent talking about Christian topics on YT, I generally think "deist undercooked scholastic antiChrist"
This was a good teaching though, God Bless, "Biblical Meditation is filling, not emptying"
Just as well I'm not British!