Let me explain.
Someone I know who struggles mightily with mental illness and depression had been prescribed to participate in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). As I looked over the materials used by the therapists, I was both encouraged and cautioned. The therapy encouraged patients to think about things that were good and lovely, reminding me of truths found in Romans 12:2, Philippians 4:8, and II Corinthians 10:4-5. But the roots of some of the mindfulness practices of CBT were largely derived from Buddhist meditative tradition.
I encouraged our friend to embrace the biblical aspects of the therapy and reject the rest – to eat the meat and spit out the bones.
In essence, seek to live out a Christian version of mindfulness.
For some people, that probably sounds like an oxymoron. If it’s mindfulness, then it can’t be Christian; if it’s Christian, then it can’t be mindfulness. Right?
Charles Stone has done the Christian community a great service in writing Holy Noticing. In the book he shows that mindfulness, done God’s way, is not Buddhist at all, but biblical.
He defines mindfulness as “the art of holy noticing – noticing, with a holy purpose, God and His handiwork, our relationships, and our inner world of thoughts and feelings.”
Stone writes, “Should Christians embrace [mindfulness] just because everyone else is doing it? No. Much about mindfulness in popular culture has nothing to do with God, Jesus, the Bible, or Christianity. And ‘Christianizing’ the latest fad dilutes the faith and can lead us astray.“
What Stone has done is to give us a tool to reclaim “holy noticing“ as a lost spiritual discipline for the church today. The second chapter of Stone’s book shows how the Bible and church history support the discipline of holy noticing. I counted almost 200 biblical references throughout the book. Passages like Psalm 139:14, Psalm 139:23–24, Isaiah 26:3, Zephaniah 3:17, Romans 12:1-2, II Corinthians 10:5, and Philippians 4:8 are key verses for Stone’s understanding of holy noticing.
This practical book is well-researched with 294 footnotes, many from scholarly sources and experts in neuroscience. Stone’s training not only as a pastor and theologian but also in neuroscience is evident throughout the book.
Christian readers will be pleased to read quotes from trusted leaders and thinkers such as J.I. Packer, Tim Keller, Mark Noll, Oswald Chambers, A.W. Tozer, Trevin Wax, C.H. Spurgeon, C.S. Lewis, and J.P. Moreland. The book also shows how Origen, Calvin, Luther, Wesley, and Moody advocated various aspects of holy noticing.
Stone uses an acronym, BREATHe, to help us learn to apply the principles he shares. Holy noticing – noticing with a holy, God focused purpose – means noticing your Body, Relationships, Environment, Affect, Thoughts, and Heart. The last “e” is for engage: engaging the world like Christ.
Stone uses an acronym, BREATHe, to help us learn to apply the principles he shares. Holy noticing – noticing with a holy, God focused purpose – means noticing your Body, Relationships, Environment, Affect, Thoughts, and Heart. The last “e” is for engage: engaging the world like Christ.
Stone has given us a separate chapter for each practice with simple, practical advice for personal application at the end of each chapter. He shows us how holy noticing cooperates with Bible reading and prayer and, indeed, take those disciplines to a whole new level. It’s especially helpful that he has provided an appendix at the end where we can see how the entire BREATHe process can be applied.
Stone’s warm, pastoral heart; his touching vulnerability about his own daughter’s painful and hopeful journey; and his playful humor are evident throughout the book. Readers will get to know this author. A special encouragement to me was a simple story about a little girl with red pigtails who gave Stone a lesson in holy noticing that he says he will never forget.
Get a copy of the book Holy Noticing. Buy it on Amazon here. Read it. More importantly, put the principles to practice. You may just experience improved physical health, less anxiety and more restful sleep, better relationships, a greater ability to regulate your emotional responses, a greater ability to engage with others in their pain and their joy, less distraction in your Bible reading and prayer, growth in your character and wisdom, increased sensitivity to see evil and injustice, and a greater love for our triune God.
Stone’s warm, pastoral heart; his touching vulnerability about his own daughter’s painful and hopeful journey; and his playful humor are evident throughout the book. Readers will get to know this author. A special encouragement to me was a simple story about a little girl with red pigtails who gave Stone a lesson in holy noticing that he says he will never forget.
Get a copy of the book Holy Noticing. Buy it on Amazon here. Read it. More importantly, put the principles to practice. You may just experience improved physical health, less anxiety and more restful sleep, better relationships, a greater ability to regulate your emotional responses, a greater ability to engage with others in their pain and their joy, less distraction in your Bible reading and prayer, growth in your character and wisdom, increased sensitivity to see evil and injustice, and a greater love for our triune God.
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