Mindfulness means paying attention in a particular way:
on purpose
in the present moment
non judgmentally
to things as they are.
Jon Kabat-Zinn
To live mindfully as a Christian, we strive to:
Rejoice always, pray without ceasing and give thanks in all circumstances.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Colossians 3:12-15
This is the very
perfection of a man, to find out his own imperfections.
Saint Augustine
Jesus’ Emotions
Jesus entered the temple courts and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves. Matthew 21:12
Jesus wept … John 11:35
About three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”) Matthew 27:46
“My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.” Matthew 26:38
He took Peter, James and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled. Mark 14:33
And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground. Luke 22:44
Worry | Fear
Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life … And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? Matthew 6:25-27
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. John 14:27
Anxiety weighs down the heart, but a kind word cheers it up. Proverbs 12:25
So then, banish anxiety from your heart and cast off the troubles of your body, for youth and vigor are meaningless. Ecclesiastes 11:10
Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. 1 Peter 5:7
Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. Matthew 6:34
He will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Deuteronomy 31:8
… do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you will be given what to say, Matthew 10:19
Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest? Luke 12:26
So we say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?” Hebrews 13:6
Do not be afraid; you will not be put to shame. Do not fear disgrace; you will not be humiliated. Isaiah 54:4
But make up your mind not to worry beforehand how you will defend yourselves. Luke 21:14
The Mind of Christ
And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:7
And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. Ephesians 6:18
Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in the way of a brother or sister. Romans 14:13
Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, whom we acknowledge as our apostle and high priest.
Hebrews 3:1
In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather he made himself nothing by taking the very nature, of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death – even death on a cross! Philippians 2:5-8
May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had, Romans 15:5
Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is ….
Romans 12:2
… the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. Romans 8:6
Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind. Luke 10:27
So what shall I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my understanding; I will sing with my spirit, but I will also sing with my understanding. 1 Corinthians 14:15
You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. Isaiah 26:3
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.
Philippians 4:8
Test me, Lord, and try me, examine my heart and my mind; for I have always been mindful of your unfailing love and have lived in reliance on your faithfulness.
Psalm 26:2-3
You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you. Isaiah 26:3
I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind, to reward each person according to their conduct, according to what their deeds deserve. Jeremiah 17:10
I know, my God, that you test the heart and are pleased with integrity. All these things I have given willingly and with honest intent. And now I have seen with joy how willingly your people who are here have given to you. Lord, the God of our fathers Abraham, Isaac and Israel, keep these desires and thoughts in the hearts of your people forever. 1 Chronicles 29:17-18
Let the wicked forsake their ways and the unrighteous their thoughts. Let them turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on them, and to our God, for he will freely pardon. Isaiah 55:7
Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done
and what I had toiled to achieve,
everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind;
nothing was gained under the sun.
Then I turned my thoughts to consider wisdom,
and also madness and folly.
I saw that wisdom is better than folly,
just as light is better than darkness.
Ecclesiastes 2:11-13
Reacting Mindlessly Makes Us Miserable
Your eyes will see strange sights, and your mind will imagine confusing things.
Proverbs 23:33
In his pride the wicked man does not seek him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God. Psalm 10:4
How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and day after day have sorrow in my heart? Psalm 13:2
My thoughts trouble me and I am distraught. Psalm 55:2
Then Daniel was greatly perplexed for a time, and his thoughts terrified him.
Daniel 4:19
Knowing their thoughts, Jesus said, “Why do you entertain evil thoughts in your hearts? Matthew 9:4
But the things that come out of a person’s mouth come from the heart, and these defile them. For out of the heart come evil thoughts—murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. Matthew 15:18-19
He has performed mighty deeds with his arm; he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts. Luke 1:51
For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight. As it is written: “He catches the wise in their craftiness”; 2and again, “The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile.” So then, no more boasting about human leaders!
1 Corinthians 3:19-21
For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Hebrews 4:12
They have an unhealthy interest in controversies and quarrels about words that result in envy, strife, malicious talk, evil suspicions and constant friction between people of corrupt mind, who have been robbed of the truth and who think that godliness is a means to financial gain. 1 Timothy 6:4-5
… his mind was troubled and he could not sleep. Daniel 2:1
They know nothing, they understand nothing; their eyes are plastered over so they cannot see, and their minds closed so they cannot understand. No one stops to think ….
Isaiah 44:18
What do people get for all the toil and anxious striving with which they labor under the sun? All their days their work is grief and pain; even at night their minds do not rest. This too is meaningless. Ecclesiastes 2:22-23
Urges Come Unbidden: Will you react or respond?
This is what the Sovereign Lord says: On that day thoughts will come into your mind and you will devise an evil scheme. Ezekiel 38:10
He said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts rise in your minds?
Luke 24:38
… but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me. Romans 7:23
Creating Space & Turning the Mind
Between stimulus and response there is a space.
In that space is our power to choose our response.
In our response lies our growth and our freedom.
Viktor Frankl
So I turned my mind to understand, to investigate and to search out wisdom and the scheme of things and to understand the stupidity of wickedness and the madness of folly.
Ecclesiastes 7:25
I remember my affliction and my wandering, the bitterness and the gall. I well remember them, and my soul is downcast within me. I well remember them, and my soul is downcast within me. Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassion never fails. Lamentations 3:19-22
1 I cried out to God for help;
I cried out to God to hear me.
2 When I was in distress, I sought the Lord;
at night I stretched out untiring hands,
and I would not be comforted.
10 Then I thought, “To this I will appeal:
the years when the Most High stretched out his right hand.
11 I will remember the deeds of the Lord;
yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago.
12 I will consider all your works
and meditate on all your mighty deeds.”
Psalm 77:1-2; 10-12
1 You have searched
me, Lord,
and you know me.
2 You know when I sit and
when I rise;
you perceive my thoughts from afar.
3 You discern my going
out and my lying down;
you are familiar with all my ways.
4 Before a word is on my
tongue
you, Lord, know it completely.
5 You hem me in behind
and before,
and you lay your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too
wonderful for me,
too lofty for me to attain.
7 Where can I go from your
Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
8 If I go up to the
heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
9 If I rise on the wings of
the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
10 even there your hand will
guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.
11 If I say, “Surely the
darkness will hide me
and the light become night around me,”
12 even the darkness will
not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you.
13 For you created my inmost
being;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14 I praise you because
I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.
15 My frame was not hidden
from you
when I was made in the secret place,
when I was woven together in the depths of the
earth.
16 Your eyes saw my unformed
body;
all the days ordained for me were written in your
book
before one of them came to be.
17 How precious to me are
your thoughts,[a] God!
How vast is the sum of them!
18 Were I to count them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand—
when I awake, I am still with you.
19 If only you, God, would
slay the wicked!
Away from me, you who are bloodthirsty!
20 They speak of you with
evil intent;
your adversaries misuse your name.
21 Do I not hate
those who hate you, Lord,
and abhor those who are in rebellion against you?
22 I have nothing but hatred
for them;
I count them my enemies.
23 Search me, God, and
know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
24 See if there is any
offensive way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.
Psalm 139