In Chapter 7, Micah is completely miserable because the folks he is preaching to are not "upright" (vs. 2) they are "evil doers" and "unethical" (vs. 3) they are all "untrustworthy" (vs. 5 & 6). But Micah, takes a stand..."But as for me..." (vs. 7) - here comes the so much more - "...I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me." (vs. 7) Can you just see Micah standing on top of a hill with his arm ramrod straight and his index finger pointed to the sky and to the God of His salvation. "As for me", Micah says, "I will watch, I will wait and I will pray!!!" for Micah knows "God to be faithful". Micah knows "God to be righteous". (vs. 9) Micah knows "God to be forgiving". (vs. 18) (Nelson, pg. 597) Micah knows God to be merciful. (vs. 18) Micah knows God to be compassionate. (vs. 19) Micah knows God to keep his promises. (vs. 20) Micah had probably spent a lot of time listening to God and thinking about who God is, for him to know, how God is.
After reading the Commentary and rereading these verses, I had to ask myself, "Do I know God the way Micah knew God?" This is where meditation came in. Faithful, righteous, forgiving, merciful, compassionate and trustworthy - these are all attributes of the Lord of Lords - the Almighty God.
Meditation simply stated is thinking, long and hard about something; pondering it, contemplating it. Really allowing it to sink in and flood your being - filling you full with the immense-ness of it. This morning, after reading the book of Micah and the commentary, I sat quietly in my little sanctuary - the room upstairs that I call mine - and thought long and hard about God's faithfulness to me and my family all throughout our years. About each time He met a need, caused something to happen or swept in to save the day. I thought about God's righteousness and the times He dealt with me justly. I thought about how God forgave me when I was unforgivable and how He calls me His child now and forgives me when I make wrong choices. I thought about the mercy God showed me when He sent His Son to die on the cross for a sinner such as I. I thought about the compassion God has shown me when I have come to him with a hurt heart and He allows me to climb upon his lap and just rest in Him, receiving His comfort. And I thought about all the promises God has given me through scripture and how He has kept every one. And as I meditated on these things, I wept. I was full to overflowing with the immense-ness of God and who He is and what He means to me. And then I had a time of rejoicing - for I get to call my God - Father. And He calls me - child.
Meditating on the things of God is a practice that ultimately brings us in a closer relationship with Him. We get to know Him better the more we think about Him. We get to know ourselves better as well. King David declared, "Oh, how I love your law! I meditate on it all day long." Psalm 119:97 The truth of the matter is, I believe it pleases God when we think about Him and His Word all the time, not just when we are in our quiet time or just when we are at church. For what we think about becomes part of us. Meditate on that for a moment. What we think about becomes part of us!
The apostle Paul in speaking to the people of Philippi encouraged them to settle disagreements, to be joyful, not to worry about anything, tell God what they need and thank Him for His provision so that they would experience God's peace and, he told them, that peace will guard their hearts and minds as they follow Christ. (Phil 4:1-7 - paraphrased by me) And then Paul closes with one final instruction, "And now dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise...". Philippians 4:8 God is truth. God is honorable. God is right and just. God is pure and holy. God is lovely. God is one to be admired and is worthy of praise. God is perfect. Think on these things.
As I meditated on God's faithfulness, I was challenged to be more faithful. As I thought about His forgiveness, I wanted to be more forgiving. I prayed that I would be more compassionate. All these things that I was meditating on about God became the desires of my heart. It became part of me - or at least who I want to be. And with God's help, I can be that person. And so can you.
Meditate on the things of God. You could start your meditation with this verse - dissect it and meditate on one portion at a time. Philippians 4:8 "Fix your thoughts on what is true..." Think about what you know to be true - God's Word, God's love for you, the fact that God is perfect and holy and good. As you are meditating it is sometimes good to write down what you are thinking so you can refer back to it. Remember what you think about becomes part of you. Thinking on the things of God will make them become part of you. You will develop a desire to be truthful with yourself and with others. "Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me - put into practice. And the God of peace will be with you." Philippians 4:9 If meditating on the things of God was good for the Philippians and Paul and Micah, it is good for us.
Meditation is thinking on these things - the things of God.
"I will sing to the Lord all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live. May my meditation be pleasing to Him, as I rejoice in the Lord." Psalm 104: 33&34
Reference
Nelson's Quick Reference Chapter-By-Chapter Bible Commentary; Warren W. Wiersbe; p.597
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