To Meditate or Not Meditate Why Some Don’t Practice Meditation
To meditate or not meditate, that is the question.
Meditation has been a spiritual practice for centuries. Reducing stress, gaining focus and developing a deeper relationship with God are all benefits (read Loretta’s story). So, why would anyone even question to practice meditation with so many benefits?
The two reasons I believe that people don’t even try meditation are:
- It takes a commitment of time
- People are afraid of losing control
While every one of us is given a 24 hour day, everyone seems to be time poor. We’ve been taught that time is money, not to waste time, and somehow, if we are not busy or doing something we are unproductive.
The perception of sitting and “doing nothing” for 10-15 minutes, doesn’t put meditation on the priority list. I used to think that way too until I turned to meditation out of desperation. (You can listen to this story.)
The truth is, meditation is not doing nothing. It’s a powerful tool to silence the voices of anxiety, doubt, self-criticism and fear. Meditation quiets the mind and allows you to actually think more clearly. This quieting allows you to respond instead of reacting because of having more peace.
God loves us especially in our messes. This whole mess business was inspired by a huge renovation project that is going on at my church and a lovely email I received from a Guided Life Ezine reader who shared her story of transformation to trust God in the midst of her messes. (You’ll love her dialogue back and forth with God.)
In my Guided Life Ezines I’ve mentioned many times that I watch very little television and rarely watch the news. It was hard to get away from the horrific events and senseless tragedy that transpired in Newtown, Connecticut with the Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings.



I usually find myself saying that with age comes wisdom. It makes perfect sense when you consider all of the life experiences we have to learn from. Well, that saying was just blown away by a five-year-old! 
