I don't think for a minute that you can reduce our walk with God to a formula of rules and regulations. Our relationship with God through His Son Jesus is grounded in love, and predicated on grace and faith. Yet, if there ever was a formulaic process found in Scripture, it would be the simple prescription found in Joshua 1:8. These were the words spoken by the Lord to Joshua and the children of Israel as they prepared to enter the long-awaited Promised Land:  

"Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful."

As often is the case in Scripture, there is a promise, and a premise. The promise is for nothing less than prosperity and success. The premise? That they would be devoted to God's word (the Book of the Law), meditating on it "day and night" so that they would be careful to live by it. A simple "formula" for success, not unlike Psalm 1.

There are two key words in that verse. One is then, which suggests an if/then conditional element of God's blessings on those who are careful to "do" those things written in God's word. The other key term is the word meditate. I have often come across Christians who are uncomfortable with the whole concept of meditation. Isn't that what Buddhists do? As a matter of fact, it is. But as one pastor I know says, they also eat breakfast too, but that doesn't keep us from doing that.

It would probably help us to understand what the word "meditate" means. In the original Hebrew, that word in Joshua 1 means "mutter," almost to suggest someone talking to themselves under their breath. It comes from a root word that originally described a cow chewing its cud, swallowing it and then bringing it back up to chew on some more. That speaks of the way we are to "digest" God's word: we chew on it, keeping it "in our mouth," and on our mind.

The reality is we all meditate regularly, on something. It may be SportsCenter, it may be the Dow Jones, it may be the Food Network or what we've read or seen on Facebook. But there's always something occupying our mind. The key is to intentionally and purposely think about His word, so that living it out becomes almost second nature. That's the process through which God renews our mind and transforms our lives (Romans 12:2). 

It's funny, we often get things on our mind that just won't go away. Those thoughts become burdens that weigh down our days, and keep us up at nights. We call that worry. Conversely, someone has referred to meditation as "positive worry," in that you are choosing positive things from God's word to let your mind rest on. The good news is, if you know how to worry, you already know how to meditate.

So let me recommend that you actively and intentionally choose to fill your mind with the truth of God's word this week, so that you can experience the "success" that God intends for you to enjoy as you walk with Him. That's not a formula, that's a promise.

I am praying for you, and I look forward to seeing you on Sunday.

--Pastor Ken