Making Room for Wisdom

Wisdom, part 2.

O come, O Wisdom from on high,

who orders all things mightily:

To us the path of knowledge show

and lead us in her ways to go.

Rejoice!

I don’t know about you, but there are times when I seem to be all filled up with “mind stuff: ” Things I’ve learned, things I think I have figured out, my continually rehashing of things from my past and constant predictions about what the future will bring (which are almost always nothing more than fantasies). In addition to this, of course, I have my own attitudes, opinions, attractions and distractions to deal with minute by minute and moment by moment.

This is a serious problem. If my mind is already full of stuff, how can I possibly expect Wisdom to come to me, to show me where true knowledge lies, and to lead me in a wise and holy path?

We’ve got to make room for Wisdom. In order to do that, we’ve got to do some serious housecleaning, some serious letting go. We’ve got to put our thoughts on “hold” and silence the constant internal chatter so that we can begin to hear the voice of Wisdom prompting us to a new way of life.

This is where and when meditation, or Centering Prayer or mindfulness  becomes so important. It doesn’t matter what you call the process or technique: the process is always the same.

If you’ve never meditated before, do a search for one of the methods I’ve named above or seek out one of the many excellent books on the subject. But, for what it is worth, here is meditation in a nutshell:

Sit quietly and focus you attention on your breathing. Notice the breath as it goes in and out of your body. If possible, count the breaths up to 10 and then begin again. Keep your attention on your breath (or on some phrase such as ”Come, Lord Jesus.” You mind will begin to wander and thoughts and feelings will arise that take your attention away from your breath or your phrase. When you notice this happening, gently return to your meditation. This will continue to happen, and each time it does, return to the basic meditation.

After a time, you will come to realize that you are the “space” through which thoughts and feelings move. You are not your thoughts; you are not your feelings. You are the one who has thoughts and feelings passing by in an endless parade. Let them pass through.

If you do this on a regular basis (15-20 minutes is good), you will begin to discover and realize many things that you have not realized before. Perhaps this is the voice of Wisdom speaking to you . . .

Blessed Advent to you.