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Mindfulness


Leaving for work that day, I backed out of the driveway, listening to my favorite radio station. I enjoy contemporary Christian tunes, and that particular morning as a song was played, the phrase, "who are we that you are mindful of us?" jumped out at me. Wow, God is mindful of me! In all my effort to be more aware, live in the present moment, being mindful of my attention and actions, God is mindful of me . . .

I knew that was a thought worth pondering for some time. In our day to day existence, we have become experts at talking, commenting, tweeting, always having something to say. But hearing and listening, let alone being aware are all lost practices. Maybe that is why we have forgotten that God is mindful of us because we're always thinking, talking, filling our mind up with endless chatter. Yet in spite of ignoring God, He is never unmindful of us, as the old Matthew Henry Commentary points out. He constantly is mindful of our case, our wants, our burdens; He's mindful of our prayers and the promises He has given us. All our comforts are derived from God's thoughts to us-ward. He's mindful though we have forgotten Him. Wow!

Realizing that fact was like clearing out cobwebs from my mind. I was getting a clearer perspective of life, just like the view from my kitchen window has cleared up. I now can actually see the mountain peak from standing at the sink. Of course that came about from my husband pruning the backyard trees down to stumps, but the end result is a picturesque scene. I too may have to cut back the stimuli that overcrowds my mind with senseless stuff, but the end result will be one of peace and purpose. So for me, mindfulness is focused living, practiced in the gracious, loving mindfulness of God . . .

"You who fear the Lord, trust in the Lord; He is their help and their shield. The Lord has been mindful of us; He will bless us . . . "
(Psalm 115:11-12)

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