Testimonials

I am finding these meditations immensely powerful. I came across them at the Greenbelt Festival when, thinking I was on the verge of a panic attack, I rushed into the Taketime stand to ask if I could sit down and listen to a meditation. I listened to a couple and found them so relaxing that I visited the stand a couple more times during the festival weekend.

I now listen to a 15-minute meditation every day, sometimes twice a day, each time sitting quietly on my own. I have suffered mental health problems for all of my adult life and have been meditating for several years, but these meditations are having a profound effect on me. I believe that Jesus is a powerful healer. Being encouraged to sit in his presence is filling me with a deep sense of peace that stays with me all the time. And such joy. I hear Jesus’s words. His insights and words of love and encouragement are calming the usual chaos in my head. I can sense His presence and it’s really comforting.

I would encourage everyone to try these meditations. I now have them with me all the time so I can listen to them anywhere.

A.D.

“I am not a Christian in the traditional sense, not believing in God or the resurrection, and would describe myself as an atheist. However, I have always viewed Jesus’s teachings as an inspiration, and a guide to leading a good life.

 Although I am an atheist, I am quite a spiritual person, and am able to imagine Jesus in my life, loving and supporting me.   

 I suffer from anxiety and depression and have found the online Taketime meditations to be very helpful in this context. It enables me to focus on my imaginary relationship with Jesus, which is incredibly supporting.

 The great thing about talking to Jesus is that you don’t have to explain things, because he already knows: When talking to a therapist or friend, you have to explain the problem, and you can often feel that they haven’t really understood. However, when you come to the Taketime opportunity to share your problems with Jesus, you feel that he knows it all:  the background, the context and reasons why it’s such a big issue. This feels like a huge relief and gives extra weight to any answers which arise. 

 The understanding which Jesus brings, gives him an authority to ‘solve’ my problems, that no one else has. On one occasion, for example, I was sharing something with him that I was worried about and the answer simply said, ” This is!”  I realized that I couldn’t change things and what I needed to do was to accept it.  If someone else had said “This is”, to me, I would have felt that they had been dismissive, but Jesus’s words carried a weight born out of his understanding. 

 I will often talk to Jesus in a meditation about something I am anxious about, thinking “I know what he is going to say”, but the answer is often something completely different. 

 One of the most important gifts from my imaginary relationship is the feeling of love and forgiveness I can receive from Jesus. Sometimes I find it hard to find myself lovable, or to forgive myself for wrongdoing. I tell myself that the real Jesus would have loved and forgiven me. This allows me to get in touch with the idea that I am lovable and not a bad person, which is hugely healing.

 I feel that Taketime has really made a difference because I have access to a loving, helpful presence at any time. I now attend a local Taketime Together group” 

Anonymous

First of all thank you for sharing! I was reduced to tears. I feel like something very powerful, gentle and beautiful has come through this message. It got to the bit where you said “what would you like to say to Him?” And I could see it all in my mind. I could visualise Him there. And I was saying Thankyou Thankyou Thankyou! And also….sorry for being so dumb and so slow! And when it came to His response I just felt this overwhelming sense of love and enjoyment and laughter. I was expecting some wise words or bible verses or something. But no. I cried so much my mascara ran down my face. Lol! Thank you for sharing that with me it’s truly beautiful.

M.R.

I listened to TakeTime and it was brilliant. Even though I am atheist I listened and when you were asking me to talk to Jesus I did in my own way, I spoke to myself about my problems and when I was listening for Jesus’ reply I was so relaxed that my mind could make sense of my problems and I felt that my subconscious could speak clearly and rationalise some of the problems I had. I thoroughly enjoyed it, thank you 🙂

H.F.

I have never tried meditation before and I wouldn’t say I know much about religion. When the meditation began to tell me the story in relation to Jesus, I really enjoyed it as I never knew where to start with religion but this allowed me to just be part of the story without knowing much about the background of Jesus. A big fear for me is feeling judged about how much I know about religion that is why I don’t want to learn more but this was a nice controlled environment that really let me just take in the story and learn a little more at the same time. The meditation over all really was good, in the end I must say I did enjoy it and it did make me want to have another go and learn more about religion because it made me feel comfortable without having to feel intimidated by more knowledgeable people and a social event.

H.F.

Jesus didn’t speak to me with words.

But just as I walk with my granddaughter, and I am big and she is little – and we hold hands, so I was walking with Jesus, and He was big and I was little – and we were holding hands.

J.J.

A very calm way to end a Saturday evening, thank you. I felt very peaceful. This could really help, being able to listen to the prayer in my own time and space.

A.M.

I just listened to the meditation and it’s brilliant, I love it!! I hope you don’t mind but I shared it on my Twitter account it’s so good and I don’t think you need to change anything

T.W.

I find I wince a bit when I hear people talking about how they ‘know Jesus’.
We can’t ‘know’ Jesus, in the sense of knowing who he was, what he looked like, or how he came to his extraordinary vocation of teaching, healing and ministry.
We only know he left a legacy which resonates, still, today, in the stories and parables of the gospels.
I use Taketime to be still, to be quiet, and to listen to that ‘still, small voice’ which the distraction and busyness of life drowns out.
I found that, by being still, and listening to these stories, I could, through my imagination, encounter the Man from Nazareth, hear his voice, hear him call me by name.
This is what he said to me.
My husband had been offered surgery which would be life-changing, but which, like all major surgery, carried risks. There was a relatively short window of opportunity for him to decide whether to have the op. Or not. Doing nothing seemed the safest option, but doing nothing also carried risks.
What to do? How to decide?
In a Taketime meditation that week, I imagined myself by the Sea of Galilee, the light on the water, the distant shouts of fishermen.
I heard the crunch of gravel, heard my name.
And this is what he said.
“The road” he said “will be hard and flinty. But I’ll hold your arm, walk with you, and give you my sandals to protect your feet.”
My husband went for surgery.
“What got me through” he said “was that image of the sandals.”
It got us both through. The road was hard, and flinty, but the surgery went well, and it was life-changing.

R.P.