Hear what the speaker, in their wisdom, might reply. Recognise that what God wants and what you want may be different; that God’s ways and your ways may not be the same. What is God asking of you through this speaker? Hear that God is a patient God and that you might not be ready yet to respond in faith. Ask God’s help, in prayer, for the courage and strength to believe and to respond in faith. For the last time, read or listen to the passage and at the end, rest in silence. Return to your breathing and your mantra for a few minutes, clearing your mind of all thoughts. You may wish to turn the word or phrase you have been reflecting on into a mantra. At the end of the meditation, you might like to spend a few minutes journaling whatever comes to mind, or walk a labyrinth, reflecting on the experience, or noting any reflections or responses you had to the text. You may wish to write a prayer to use on other occasions, or even construct a mantra from the word or phrase you heard today with the ear of your heart. Lectio Divina for People The practice used for 1500 years in the monastic movements of Christianity is called Lectio Divina, or Sacred Reading. Devised by St Benedict, it involves reading, but more importantly, listening with the of your heart” to a passage of scripture until a word or phrase strikes “ear you. That word or phrase then becomes the object of meditation: to be used as a mantra or as a means of an interior dialogue as to what it is saying to you in your time and place. One’s meditation on the word or phrase ends with a prayer. Read, Read again and Reflect; Read again and Respond; Read again and Rest.
Hear what the speaker, in their wisdom, might reply. Recognise that what God wants and what you want may be different; that God’s ways and your ways may not be the same. What is God asking of you through this speaker? Hear that God is a patient God and that you might not be ready yet to respond in faith. Ask God’s help, in prayer, for the courage and strength to believe and to respond in faith. For the last time, read or listen to the passage and at the end, rest in silence. Return to your breathing and your mantra for a few minutes, clearing your mind of all thoughts. You may wish to turn the word or phrase you have been reflecting on into a mantra. At the end of the meditation, you might like to spend a few minutes journaling whatever comes to mind, or walk a labyrinth, reflecting on the experience, or noting any reflections or responses you had to the text. You may wish to write a prayer to use on other occasions, or even construct a mantra from the word or phrase you heard today with the ear of your heart. Lectio Divina for People The practice used for 1500 years in the monastic movements of Christianity is called Lectio Divina, or Sacred Reading. Devised by St Benedict, it involves reading, but more importantly, listening with the “ear of your heart” to a passage of scripture until a word or phrase strikes you. That word or phrase then becomes the object of meditation: to be used as a mantra or as a means of an interior dialogue as to what it is saying to you in your time and place. One’s meditation on the word or phrase ends with a prayer. Read, Read again and Reflect; Read again and Respond; Read again and Rest.
year_seven.docx