365 Days! I did it!

On December 29, 2016, I challenged myself to meditate at least once a day for 365 consecutive days.

 

The challenge came from the APP on my phone called Insight Timer, which I had downloaded onto my phone in October 2013. Since that day I have meditated 689 days.

In 2016, the 365 day challenge was put into place and I accepted the challenge. I have the option of using a timer, a guided meditation, ambiance music or simple sounds of nature, among many other options. I have meditated in airports, while camping with my Girl Scout troop, on my back porch, by my fireplace in my living room, in the car traveling, at parks, and walking along greenbelts. I wake early so not to disturb my daily routine and use my earbuds to focus on the messages or music. My back porch is by far my favorite place as I feel a connection to all that is nestled among my herbs, candles, artifacts, and the sounds (and sometimes smell) of nature surrounding me.

The view from my back porch.

One of my guided meditations ends by guaranteeing that if I do this or some other form of meditation for ten consecutive days it will change my life. And it did! I asked myself, how would 365 consecutive days of meditating change my life?

Dr. Dennis Merritt Jones writes in The Art of Being, “Discipline gives focus and direction to our energy of intention, which in turn unleashes the genius.” Here is how my life has changed since I accepted this challenge.  For one, I go through the day thinking. I know that thoughts become things, so I exercise discernment over that which I allow myself to think, speak and believe. It’s called right thinking.

I also have a day of constant prayer because I believe that our thoughts are prayers. Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh writes, “Every moment is a gift of life.” And through my daily meditation practice I have come to understand and appreciate the importance of mindfulness, which is the capacity to recognize what is happening in each moment.

Because I take the time to listen every day to the sweet inner wisdom of my soul, I come away feeling loved, happy, at peace and filled with joy for I am in the presence of pure being.  Jesus said it best, “On that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, I in you.” (John 14:20)

On to the next 365 Days!

Namaste