I have a hard time sitting still. It’s kind of a problem. “Be still and know I am” is in the “How To” book on enlightenment. Even a sign on my wall reminds, “Make time for the quiet moments as God whispers and the world is loud.” So it’s not surprising that in our lessons we are often asked to quietly reflect. But in Lesson 124 Jesus asks us to sit and meditate for 30 minutes. He says it is the, “… first attempt at an extended period for which we give no rules nor special words to guide your meditation.” (OrEd.WkBk.124.8)
I wanted to know, do I really have to sit still for 30 minutes? Aren’t there a lot of different ways to focus on an idea without sitting quietly and doing nothing?
So I tested it. Every morning, when the sky is still dark and stars still shine, I take a walk before cars or people are out. It’s quiet, it’s peaceful and there’s really nothing to distract my attention. It’s a perfect time for self-introspection and quiet reflection. On my walk one day I repeated and reflected on the idea from Lesson 124: “Let me remember I am one with God.”
I’m here to tell you, it didn’t work. Not because I wasn’t inspired, or wasn’t focused. And not because it wasn’t important to me. It didn’t work because the physical act of walking had the effect of anchoring my mind to my body. The “not me” who was walking in a body had a hard time being “me” outside of the body and One with God at the same time. (And “me” in Oneness also had a hard time walking in a straight line!)
I guess sometimes we just have to sit there.
(originally appeared in Miracles Weekly #320, Jan. 18 2022)