How to Meditate on Scripture Day and Night

One of the greatest promises in the Bible is found in Psalm 1:2-3. This passage teaches that if we meditate on God’s Word day and night we will be “like a tree firmly planted by streams of water” (NAS). Here is the secret to the consistent Christian life.

But how does a person meditate day and night? One obvious way is to stay awake 24 hours a day. However, there is a less strenuous way to accomplish this.

How to Meditate Day and Night

Have you ever awakened in the night feeling rigid and tense? Have you ever gone to bed with a problem in your mind, and awakened the next morning exhausted-as though you had worked through the night? Have you ever noticed that your last thought of the day is usually your first thought of the next morning? Many people believe that these phenomena indicate that our subconscious minds keep on working while we are asleep.

When a person sleeps, his conscious mind rests while his subconscious mind continues to function in order to keep the body’s organs working. But the conscious and the subconscious are in a closed-circuit relationship, so whatever the conscious was working on prior to his falling asleep will be transmitted to the subconscious.

Too often we are wrestling with a problem just before we go to sleep. So rather than allowing the subconscious to work on our problems and worries, we can meditate on the Word of God while we sleep.

A simple application of this theory is to read the passage intended for the next morning’s quiet time just before you go to sleep. Take about three minutes to scan through the passage and ask God to give you a thought that will help you live for Him the next day. Take this thought with you to bed.

Your subconscious mind will work on the thought while you sleep, and you will probably have the same thought in your mind the next morning. The writer of the Proverbs may be alluding to this when he writes, “When you walk about, they will guide you; When you sleep, they will watch over you; And when you awake, they will talk to you” (Proverbs 6:22, NAS).

Make God’s Word your last word every day, and with the help of the subconscious mind you will be able to meditate on the Word “day and night.”


Adapted from Meditation, May 9, 2011. Used with permission by NavPress.

Post by Jim Downing -

Comments:

  1. This is so proufound! It’s like in layman getting a light bulb moment. Truly the unfolding of His word brings understanding to the simple. Praise God for this analogy.

  2. Thank God for this information about meditating on His Word, but when you receive a revelation of meditating on His Word, it is something awesome, praise God!

  3. I would love to meditate but I do not know how to ..an me being disabled and only having one income I can not afford to even by books or anything like that.but I bet this book is so awsome and helps do many..thank you for giving us a sample to start off..

  4. God is so strategic. He led here to a word and to answer the question, ” How to meditate on His Word day and night. God bless you and thank you. This is what I need.

  5. Thanks a million Jim. The eyes of my understanding are enlightened by your teaching. Will definitely practice this. What can be better than sealing a day and opening another with God’s precious word of life?

  6. I think it is great to lead people in the way they should go. I know some things we post might cost money. What is more important? Making money or saving souls.

    1. Monty Hightower, I believe it’s more important to lead people in the way they should go. However , when you spend your hard earned money to lead people who are getting their hard earned money then support will be needed. In this case , Proverbs 11:25…“he that watereth shall be watered.”
      If you can buy gospel music then you can buy a gospel book. I hope you got the gist? Shalom.

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