The Breath, Altered States, and the Search for MORE Jesus

My Story

Around 2015, Jesus introduced me to the concept and practice of mindfulness and meditation. But first, he set the stage for my new training.

Jesus purposed (created) and/or permitted (allowed) a "perfect storm" (aka a Jesus Storm----the kind that only Jesus can calm). The features of that J-storm included me losing my mental health, my grip on my career, trust in my relationships, and so much more.

A falling apart at the seams. It was perfect. If the aim was to get my attention.

It was.

It did.

I found myself floundering---dealing with a season of extreme mania, anxiety and depression.

My dire circumstance prompted me to reached out to God like never before. Jesus came. And He began to instruct me about meditation and mindfulness.

In the process Jesus taught me about so much more.

This thought piece captures some of those lessons.

Part 1: The Most Common Altered State On Earth

People often speak about meditation as if it were something exotic.

An altered state. A special state. A mystical state.

But perhaps the most interesting thing about meditation is that it is not exotic at all.

It begins with something so ordinary that most people overlook it entirely:

The breath.

Take away food and a person can survive for weeks. Take away water and a person can survive for days. Take away breath and the equation changes dramatically.

Within moments, The Breath becomes the only thing that matters.

This raises an interesting possibility.

What if Jesus hid one of His greatest lessons in the most common activity on earth?

Breathing.

Part 2: Return To The Breath

What if the continual return to The Breath is not merely a biological function, but also an approximation of repentance itself?

Return.

Wander.

Return again.

Lose focus.

Return again.

Forget.

Remember.

Breathe in.

Breathe out.

Again and again and again.

The pattern appears remarkably similar to the spiritual life.

Part 3: Attention Is A Spiritual Technology

Perhaps this is why so many people throughout history have discovered that paying attention to breath often changes consciousness.

Not because breath is magical.

But because attention itself is powerful.

Jon Kabat-Zinn frequently teaches that it is not the object of meditation that matters most. It is the act of attending.

The returning.

The noticing.

The remembering.

The coming back.

From a Jesus-centered perspective, this sounds remarkably familiar.

Part 4: Jesus And Altered States

The phrase “altered state of consciousness” sometimes scares religious people.

But perhaps we should ask a different question.

Has God always worked through altered states?

Prayer alters consciousness.

Worship music alters consciousness.

Fasting alters consciousness.

Temple worship alters consciousness.

Deep scripture study alters consciousness.

Love alters consciousness.

Grief alters consciousness.

Falling in love alters consciousness.

Being born again alters consciousness.

The issue has never been whether consciousness changes.

The issue has always been:

What spirit is influencing the change?

Part 5: By Their Fruits

The real question is not whether meditation can create an altered state.

It often can.

The better question is:

What fruit follows?

Greater love?

Greater humility?

Greater compassion?

Greater clarity?

Greater willingness to serve?

Greater desire for Jesus?

Or something else?

That seems to be the test given throughout scripture:

Part 6: The Breath In All Things

Suppose for a moment that Jesus is The Breath.

Not merely the breath moving through your lungs.

But the deeper Breath behind all life.

The animating principle.

The Life.

The Light.

The Presence.

If that is true, then learning to return to The Breath becomes one of the most important skills a human being can develop.

Not because breathing is the goal.

But because breathing becomes a doorway.

A training ground.

A Mr. Miyagi exercise.

Part 7: The Mr. Miyagi Lesson

Paint the fence.

Wax the car.

Sand the deck.

Catch the fly.

Breathe in.

Breathe out.

At first it seems simple.

Then it seems boring.

Then it becomes profound.

Eventually you discover that the exercise was never really about the exercise.

It was about learning to pay attention.

And perhaps that is what Jesus has been trying to teach all along.

Part 8: Meditation As Love

Jon Kabat-Zinn says:

To which a Jesus follower might add:

Of course it is.

Because Jesus is love.

And every genuine return to The Breath is, in some small way, a return to Him.

Attention is love.

Awareness is love.

Presence is love.

And love is one of the deepest expressions of The Breath.

Part 9: The Great Experiment

So perhaps the invitation is not to become a meditation expert.

Nor to become fascinated with altered states.

Nor to chase mystical experiences.

The invitation is simpler.

Notice. Attend. Return. Breathe. Become aware.

Then ask:

What happens when I do this?

Do I become more loving?

More peaceful?

More patient?

More Christlike?

Do I experience MORE Jesus?

That is the experiment.

Part 10: The Hunt Is On

This experiment can be performed anywhere.

In a chapel.

In a temple.

In a car.

On a mountain.

At Google.

In a kitchen.

In a hospital bed.

In a rocking chair.

The hunt is on to find The Breath in all things.

And perhaps, if we look closely enough, we will discover that what we have been searching for was breathing through our lives all along.

Part 11: Links

Click on this link to read (and watch) what Jesus and Jon said