Week 2: Chapter 1 — Meditation

1.Foster draws a sharp distinction between Eastern meditation, which aims at emptying the mind, and Christian meditation, which aims at filling the mind with God. Why is this distinction important, and how might it relieve concerns some Christians have about meditation?

2.He describes meditation as 'the ability to hear God's voice and obey His word.' Have you ever experienced a moment — in prayer, in reading Scripture, in nature — when you felt you genuinely heard from God? What did that feel like, and what made it possible?

3.Foster introduces the practice of meditating on Scripture by 'ruminating' on it — returning to a passage again and again as a cow chews its cud. Try this with a short passage (Psalm 23:1 or John 15:5) before your group meeting. What did you notice on the second or third reading that you missed on the first?