If you’re interested in Christian meditation, then you might also be interested in getting properly equipped. You might not even know where to start, and you’re looking for expert advice. And if you want to delve deeper into the knowledge and training on Christian meditation, then a few books might seem like a good idea.
Where can I find Christian meditation training? Christian meditation training can be found around the world at retreat centers and training centers. These are considered “on-site” training. You can also find Christian meditation training online. This is training with a curriculum and an online community surrounding you as you walk down the Christian meditation journey. Books are also helpful resources to learn how to meditate as a Christian.
We’ve compiled a list for each category of Christian meditation training. The three categories are On-Site, Online, and Books.
On-Site Christian Meditation Training
There are Christian Meditation Training centers located around the world. Below, we have listed three examples to give you an idea of where to start. You may even be interested in these particular centers, and we hope that you are inspired by them.
1. Spiritual Deepening for Global Transformation Program
“Twelve Weekends to Inner Stillness, Compassion, Unity & Hope” is the message of this Christian mediation training. This program seems to desire a deep community in the midst of meditation. Not only does this program focus on meditation, but it also focuses on global transformation and spiritual deepening.
This program spans over the course of three years, with each year having four weekends of training. It is located in Willard, Wisconsin and is $1,700 per year.
This Christian meditation training offers:
- A thoughtful blend of study, contemplation, dialogue, and community.
- Guidance and support for exploring a rich interior life.
- Skills to meet life’s challenges with a depth of understanding and compassion.
- Opportunities to transform, heal and create a life of spiritual depth and grace for your own sake and for the sake of the world.
2. Christian Yoga Meditation Guided Nidra Certification
The training is described; “Learn how we can help heal the world and lead others into the presence of God through the ancient healing modality of Guided Nidra”.
Located in Carlsbad, CA, this program is only a day long, for $99. If you want to learn more about Nidra Yoga, click here.
This Christian meditation training offers:
- Combination of the Bible and Yoga, while it is
- Teaching that meditation is a Biblical practice
- This program will walk you through Nidra yoga practice and God’s word. This training, in essence, is Scripture-filled yoga.
- Breakfast is included.
- Training Supplements and Nidra Manual
- Registered YogaFaith Meditation and Guided Nidra Trainer Certification
- Connecting to your family
3. God Getaways Christian Meditation and Healing Retreat
“These Christian Meditation Retreats have attracted Christians from all over the globe who are interested in learning how to meditate, deepen their practice, draw closer to God, and find inner healing”.
This is a 10-day training program in Lamothe-Goas, France and it costs $1,795.
This Christian meditation training offers:
- Daily meditation and instruction
- Gentle Christ-centered yoga workouts
- Daily workshops and retreat workbook
- Some excursions and transportation for sightseeing in nearby cities, markets, etc.
- Transportation to and from the retreat center
- Organic breakfast, lunch, and dinner
- 9 nights accommodation
Online Christian Meditation Training
Online Christian Meditation Training is becoming more and more popular. This is largely due to its accessibility and lower cost. It is also convenient to do it in your own home. Online, you will be guided in many ways throughout your meditation training.
1. The School of Meditation – An Introduction to Christian Meditation
The description from this course says, “The story of how meditation was rediscovered within the Christian tradition as a form of contemplative prayer and how it is practiced by many Christians around the world”.
This is an introduction to Christian meditation. This means that the course will cover all major topics of the subject. Some of the major topics that are covered include; “what is Christian meditation?”, “Rediscovering the Tradition”, and “Ways of Prayer”.
The leader of this course, John Main OSB, considers these topics to be fundamental in order to understand Christian meditation. Not only will this course help you to understand the subject, but it will also help you to make meditation a regular practice.
2. Christian Meditation Mini-Course to Transform Your Life
“Restore Your Peace of Mind, Reduce Stress & Draw Closer to God”, is the heart of this training.
This training is not only about Christian meditation, but it is about making your meditation impactful, effective, and regularly practiced. Another highlight of this training is the help in reducing your stress, a desire to give you peace of mind, and the goal of being closer to God. These can all be outcomes of Christian meditation.
This Christian meditation training offers:
- Students will learn about the transformative power of Christian meditation.
- How to develop a regular Christian meditation morning routine.
- How Christian meditations deepen your relationship with God.
- Various types of meditation and how to meditate as a Christian.
3. Abiding in Christ Christian Meditation Course
“Are you ready to deepen your practice or teach others the transformative power of Christian meditation”? If yes, then this Christian meditation program may be right for you.
This program consists of 10 separate modules. Each has its own topic, and guided meditations. The goal is that mediation would be a tool that one could use for the rest of their life to draw closer to God.
This Christian meditation training offers:
- Reduce Stress
- Draw Closer to God
- Promote Healing
- Enjoy Peace of Mind
- Relieve Pain & Suffering
- Build a Spiritual Foundation
Christian Meditation Training Books
Books are a wonderful way to train yourself in meditation. These books should equip you to meditate in your own way and to inform you on how to meditate. Take a look and read their summaries below.
1. Christian Meditation: Experiencing the Presence of God – James Finley
The book summary: “Christian Meditation introduces an ancient practice to a contemporary audience. James Finley, a former monk, and student of Thomas Merton presents the fundamentals of both understanding and practicing Christian meditation. He provides simple, helpful instructions, as well as explaining the deeper connection with the divine that meditation can bring. Above all, he makes clear that the aim of meditation is to allow us to experience divine contemplation — the presence of God”.
2. Transforming Your Thought Life: Christian Meditation in Focus –
Sarah Geringer
The book summary: “Your Mind Is Under Attack. Thousands of thoughts fly through our minds every day, many of them negative. And Satan knows how susceptible we are to these negative thoughts that leave us frustrated and feeling defeated. However, the time-honored practice of Christian meditation can help us find victory in these spiritual battles. Transforming Your Thought Life offers guided meditations and personal examples that will help you train your mind to stay grounded in God’s Word. Each chapter examines a particular kind of negative thought pattern and provides key Bible verses and prayers for standing strong against it. Day by day, as you hide God’s Word in your heart and mind, you will move closer to the heart and mind of God”.
3. Into the Silent Land: A Guide to the Christian Practice of Contemplation – Martin Laird
The book summary: “Sitting in stillness, the practice of meditation and the cultivation of awareness are commonly thought to be the preserves of Hindus and Buddhists. Martin Laird shows that the Christian tradition of contemplation has its own refined teachings on using a prayer word to focus the mind, working with the breath to cultivate stillness and the practice of inner vigilance or awareness. But this book is not a mere historical survey of these teachings. In Into the Silent Land, we see the ancient wisdom of both the Christian East and West brought sharply to bear on the modern-day longing for radical openness to God in the depths of the heart”.