Developing Spiritual Muscle

Oprah Winfrey

Developing Spiritual Muscle is an article Oprah Winfrey wrote for Huff Post.

I'm like Oprah.  My mind was, and often is, full of thoughts and ideas or worries and annoyances.  It was fruitless to try to empty my mind, for example, for the designated 20 minutes I used to set aside for my sitting meditation. 

So over the years, I learned (a) not to force the emptying process.  I simply sat quietly and still, and like a murky pond, my mind slowly emptied and cleared.  Not perfectly.  Not totally.  But clearer.  I learned (b) to do mini-meditation sessions during the day, lasting as briefly as one or two deep breaths.  Finally, I learned (c) to appreciate the very nature of my mind. 

I love to think.  It's very relaxing and grounding, and in this sense, thinking is positively meditative for me!

My life is better when I get still regularly. Call it meditation or call it quiet time -- doesn't matter. The benefits are the same. If you stay with the practice, it's like developing spiritual muscle. I promise you will become less stressed, more focused.