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Feb 21, 2021

310 Temptation Follows the Covenant, A Guided Christian Meditation on Mark 1:9-13 with the Recenter With Christ app

I'm Chaplain Jared and I work as a hospice chaplain and an ICU chaplain, my purpose in making this podcast is to help you find more peace in your life and to be more open for your heart to be changed by the Spirit of God. By using centuries old form of Christian Meditation named Lectio Divina:

Outline: Relaxation, Reading, Meditation, Prayer, Contemplation and Visualization.

Get into a place where you can sit comfortably and uninterrupted for about 20 minutes.You should hopefully not be driving or anything tensing or unrelaxing. If you feel comfortable to do so, I invite you to close your eyes.

Guided Relaxation / Guided Meditation:

Breathe and direct your thoughts to contacting God. Let your stomach be a balloon inflate, deflate.

Bible verses for Meditation:

Mark 1:9-13
NIV
9 At that time Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10 Just as Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. 11 And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”
12 At once the Spirit sent him out into the wilderness, 13 and he was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals, and angels attended him.

ESV
9 In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10 And when he came up out of the water, immediately he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. 11 And a voice came from heaven, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”
12 The Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. 13 And he was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan. And he was with the wild animals, and the angels were ministering to him.

Meditation on Scripture:

The account of the baptism and temptation of Jesus are much longer in the Gospel of Matthew. They also are separated by a chapter marker. This has had the unintended consequence of separating these stories yet they are intrinsically connected. It is not a coincidence that the Temptation of Christ immediately followed His baptism. It may seem strange or inequitable that Christ would have been tempted immediately following something that has been recognized and presented in Christianity as an induction into the community of God. Of course Jesus did not need any purification associated with Baptism yet regardless the only documented temptation of Jesus occurred right afterward.

It may seem in our life that once we commit to live as God would want that doors will open making that easy for us. Perhaps we expect that God will clear all the weeds away from the path or that he will make things turn out easier in our efforts to overcome Sin. What this demonstrates is the persistence of the Enemy to destroy forward progress. Sometimes it is at our greatest points of potential that we experience the greatest temptation.

What is also modeled is that if we can remain faithful and resist temptation while also making efforts to grow closer to God, therein is an amazing combo. With our determination and willingness to continue to strive to overcome temptation God will give us the boost we need to make the progress we most need.

Meditation of Prayer:

Pray as directed by the Spirit.

Dedicate these moments to the patient waiting, when you feel ready ask God for understanding you desire from Him.

Meditation of God and His Glory / Hesychasm:

I invite you to sit in silence feeling being patient for your own faults and trials.

Summarize what insights you have gained during this meditation and meditate and visualize positive change in your life:
This is a listener funded podcast at patreon.com/christianmeditationpodcast

Updates:

Final Question: When do you experience your greatest temptation?

Final Thought: Something that seems to be indicated is that we need not judge our spiritual progress based on how hard we are tempted but rather how we can overcome those temptations through God’s help. Jesus quoted scripture and referred to the value of reliance on God. It is certainly true that our human condition is hopeless without God and without the victory obtained through the Cross. This introduced grace and offered it to us. May the grace of God help us overcome temptation when it comes our way, even increasing temptation.

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