What is the difference between meditation and mindfulness? Do they accomplish the same thing? I like to look at it like this: meditation is a formal internal practice where we keep our body still and go within for a specific period of time. Meditation is inner work with an alert and focused effort. We can use our awareness/ consciousness to explore who we are and who God is.
Mindfulness, on the other hand, is about improving our awareness in our daily lives. This can be practiced anytime and anywhere. You can be walking, working or talking at the same time that you are practicing being mindful. Mindfulness is about having an awareness, a consciousness of what you are doing, saying, and
feeling all at once in the present moment. A formal meditation practice will help you to become more
mindful, but a mindfulness practice will not make you become a better meditator.
In the YahLight Practices, meditation proceeds prayer. Meditation is the work we do in order to connect to God’s Spirit in a cleansed and surrendered way. During meditation we surrender our soul to God’s Spirit and we become “in spirit and truth.” When we pray, we are united with God’s Spirit. We are able to co-create with The
Creator.
Then, we can go out into the world and practice true mindfulness, our mind surrendered to the mind of Christ. Our awareness elevated and connected to the awareness of God’s Spirit inside of us. Our human spirit and God’s Holy Spirit working together for the good of all.
Tonyah Dee has studied the Bible and wisdom traditions of the world for the last 30 years and teaches about finding ways to increase inner strength, stability, and confidence through practicing spiritual disciplines and healthy habits daily. Tonyah is a nutritionist, registered dietitian (R.D.), and earned her B.S. from Loma Linda University. She also holds certifications in Christ-centered life coaching, equine therapy, and meditation. Tonyah has been published in Scary Mommy, MSN, The Mighty, Mantra Wellness, CoveyClub, Thrive Global. Follow Tonyah on her blog, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn, and Medium.