What does it mean to be mindful? A question I asked myself today. A term we hear often in our mainstream culture, and if you look it up, because I did, you will see many answers mostly having to do with “staying in the moment”. But I was not so much interested in this definition. I was more concerned with what God had in mind when He used the term.
In Deuteronomy 32 we read the song that Moses was asked by God to write and teach to the children of Israel. Along verse 18 we read this:
Of the Rock who begot you, you are unmindful, And have forgotten the God who fathered you.
Wow, there is that word Unmindful, the opposite of Mindful, so you can see how my question was posed. What does it mean to be mindful? Because I certainly do not want to be unmindful of the Rock (descriptive here and speaking of God who was literally their rock, the unmovable, unchangeable ONE, the you can bet your life on kinda God).I did a quick Bible word search and mostly I saw action words such as “fix” and “set” interchanged with the term. I also found in Isaiah a reference to being mindful, Isaiah 17:10
Because you have forgotten the God of your salvation And have not been mindful of the rock of your stronghold.
The Oxford dictionary gives this as a definition of mindfulness - remembering somebody/something and considering them or it when you do something a synonym would be the word conscious. So I am getting the picture here. To be mindful of God is to set our minds on Him, His character and His truth. To actively think of Him and be aware of Him. You know when you're newly in love you often think of that person through the day, how to please them, how to bring a smile to their face. You study the things that they like and look for ways to honor them and bring them pleasure. I think when we are mindful of God He becomes the center of everything. It is usually easy to see what we love because we will mind it well.
There is further understanding and instruction when we look at Deuteronomy 32 which concludes the song of Moses. In verse 43 Moses speaks to the people and says this: Set your hearts on all the words which I testify among you today, which you shall command your children to be careful to observe--all the words of this law. For it is not a futile thing for you because it is your life and by the word you shall prolong your days in the land which you cross over the Jordan to possess.
What does it mean to “Set your hearts on these Words”? I have often said and will say again that being a christian is an active relationship. Not something you observe on Sundays but certainly not something you toss out on Sundays. I often hear two worlds collide in my profession. The Religious verses the Spiritual. Both words have the propensity to conjure up both negative and positive inclinations. The spiritual only group tosses everything they view as legalistic and structural while the Religious only group can’t take it if you get your donkey out of the ditch on Sunday and often like to judge who is qualified to rescue the donkey. Clearly there is a conundrum of sorts that is not original to our day. Even the people of Jesus day had trouble comprehending this Jesus who would eat wheat from the field on a Sunday and enter the temple and heal all on the same day. Both forbidden in Keeping with the Law of honoring the Sabbath. But Jesus did not come to do away with the law but to fulfill the law. In essence showing us it’s not just about the commands and the teachings it is a heart thing. However; Loving Him does not negate the commands, quite the opposite, your desire turns to the commands to do them because you love Him and want to please Him.
John 14:15 If you love me you’ll keep my commands
I’ll ask the question more personally now. Are you mindful of God? How often is he a part of what you're doing? How often are you a part of what HE is doing? It is easy to ask Him along for the ride we want to go on but are you willing to take up your cross and follow Him? To follow where He leads? Because if we LOVE Him we will keep his commands, even the hard ones requiring self sacrifice because we know it is written in His Word that it will not be futile, instead it will be life to us and prolong our days.
Being mindful of God is good for you, body, soul and spirit. We should consciously choose to prioritize what concerns Him, mindfulness looks like a passionate pursuit to know Him more. Submitting to reading His word is part of our responsibility to passionately pursue Him. Submitting ourselves to His teaching keeps us mindful of His truth. Spending time worshiping him and thinking about Him keeps our love for Him fresh. Don’t let your love for Him grow cold through neglect but be MINDFUL of him. Love the Lord your God will all your heart, with all your soul, all your mind, with all your strength, and your neighbor as yourself. Luke 10:27