What is contemplative prayer?

from the old testament

• As with any spiritual practice, if we cannot find an applicable example in Scripture, we must analyze it with biblically-grounded caution and protect our hearts from false practices (Proverbs 4:23, 23:19, 27:19).

from the new testament

• The Christian practice of contemplative prayer, which includes retreating to quiet places and focusing on God, is biblical. In Matthew 6:6-8 Jesus instructs His listeners to go into their closets and pray.
• Jesus modeled pulling away from the crowds in order to pray (Mark 1:35; Luke 5:16). We may not have a massive amount of people following us like Jesus did, but we do have stresses of daily life that can distract us from meaningful time spent alone with God.
• Pulling away from the craziness of the world and coming to God in solitude helps believers focus on Him. Our words may not always be needed. Rather, Christians can be attuned to God’s word and have the promise of the Holy Spirit intervening for us (2 Timothy 3:16-17; Romans 8:26-30).
• We are not to conform to the world but instead present our bodies to God as a living sacrifice (Romans 12:1-2). As such, we should pursue biblical renewal of our mind, not emptying it to be influenced by mysticism.
• All prayer modeled in Scripture is active (1 Corinthians 14:15). We should be alert, not mentally “emptied” when we are praying.
• God’s Word promises us that we have everything we need for a godly life (2 Peter 1:3-8) and that the mystery of His will has already been made known to us in the Gospel. These truths must anchor us.
• Philippians 4:4-7 encourages us to pray continually. Often, our environments are not distraction-free of distraction, but that is no excuse to neglect prayer.
• Instead of allowing our minds to be influenced by the enemy, we should focus our thoughts on the godly things mentioned in Philippians 4:8.
• We can practice a form of "contemplative prayer" that is centered on God and His Word (2 Timothy 3:16-17).
• Christians are to be alert against the enemy (1 Peter 5:8), and this means being spiritually attuned with what is happening around us. If we try to empty our mind to make room for another spiritual force to influence us, we fall prey to the enemy’s schemes.
• Some will claim to be Christians and insist that their teachings and other practices are biblical, such as New Age contemplative prayer. But we are called to “test the spirits” since “many false prophets have gone out into the world” (1 John 4:1).

implications for today

Contemplative prayer has two points of reference that must be understood: modernized New Age teachings and traditions in historical Christianity. Unfortunately, both use the term contemplative prayer, which can make the topic confusing and possibly dangerous if not understood properly. Any kind of "contemplative prayer" or meditation based on an emptying of the mind with the purpose of a mystical encounter with a higher being has its roots in Eastern mysticism. This is the type of "contemplative prayer" being used today by New Age practitioners who do not believe in the One true God and Creator as revealed in Scripture. Associated terms include praying to "the Divine" or "encountering a Higher Power." On that description, no Christian should practice contemplative prayer as any practice not founded in biblical truth with the chief goal being God’s glory is dangerous.

The other danger with New Age "contemplative prayer" lies in entering a meditative state with the emptying of the mind or rote repetition of a word. This is not modeled anywhere in the Bible and certainly not by Jesus.

But “contemplative prayer" in the Christian sense dates back to the first century and the Desert Fathers, a monastic movement that looked for solitude, austerity, and sacrifice as a way of life to be closer to God and follow in Jesus' footsteps. Much of early Christianity was influenced by the traditions that came out of that movement, including prayer and meditation with God that was slow and focused. This is the practice that Christians today may learn and employ.