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fundamental purposes of solitude is to give us a concrete way of entering into such stillness, so that God can come in and do what only God can do.
The only time when I am not lonely and my longing for union is satisfied is when I am in solitude.
But in solitude there is rest from all of that, and for a time it is as if I come in touch with a deep current of truth that runs underneath everything else: All things have already been reconciled in Christ—even those people and things that seem broken beyond repair.
Don’t rush or try to make anything happen. Let your soul venture out and say something to you that perhaps you have had a hard time acknowledging:
The Word of Scripture should never stop sounding in your ears and working in you all day long, just like the words of someone you love.
“What does it say to me?” Then ponder this word long in your heart until it has gone right into you and taken possession of you.
The Scriptures gave me a place to be and to breathe. I loved God because of what I learned about God from the Scriptures.
you could study Scripture like a textbook and it would hold up under scrutiny. You could study it from different angles: as a history book, as a compilation of great literature, as a tool for developing systematic theologies, as a sociology text that illustrates
various facets of the human condition.
Somewhere along the way I figured out that you could get really good at studying and memorizing verses, filling in the blanks of Bible study guides, checking chapters off a reading list, coming up with creative approaches for Bible study and message preparation.
the greater purpose for which the Scriptures have been given: to allow my own heart and soul to be penetrated by an intimate word from God. My mind remained engaged, but my heart and soul had drifted far away.
One way to reflect on our varied experiences with Scripture is to think about the difference between reading a newspaper or textbook and reading a love letter.
You probably did some picking and choosing of what was interesting or pertinent to you and didn’t even finish most of the articles.
we had specific and very utilitarian purposes in mind as we read—getting a good grade, being able to check a reading assignment off a list, solving a problem or proving a point, writing a book report—and when that purpose was accomplished, we didn’t think of it again.
The sad truth is that many of us approach the Scriptures more like a textbook than like a love letter.
As the reader, I employ key techniques that allow me to use the text to advance my own purposes.
controlling the text for our own ends—gathering information, interpreting or applying the information, proving our point about something, gaining a ministry tool or solving a problem. When we are in an information-gathering mindset, we are analytical in our approach and at times even critical and judgmental. We are reading through cognitive filters, made up of our preconceived thoughts, feelings, biases, doctrinal systems, teachings and life experiences that have shaped us. When we are in this mode, it is exceedingly difficult for us to hear anything new because we have so many unconscious
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The information-gathering mindset is very appropriate and helpful for a student in an academic or a learning environment. But when applied to Scripture, this approach does not serve the deeper longing of our heart—the longing to hear a word from God that is personal and intimate and takes us deeper into the love that our soul craves. The study of Scripture is important, but if we stop there, we will eventually hit a wall spiritually.
engage the Scriptures for spiritual transformation, on the other hand, we engage not only our mind but also our heart, our emotions, our body, our curiosity, our imagination and our will.
When we engage the Scriptures for spiritual transformation, we make it our top priority to listen to God relationally rather than seeking only to learn more about God cognitively.
Scripture becomes an instrument of God’s control rather than a tool that we control to our own ends.
Thus when we read Scripture for relationship we pay attention to our own inner dynamics and allow our response to take place in the deeper levels of our beings.
How do I feel about what is being said? Where do I find myself resonating deeply? Where do I find myself resisting, pulling back, wrestling with what Scripture might be saying?
You may even notice that you feel resonance and resistance at the same time.
Why do I feel this way?
What do my reactions tell me about myself—my attitudes, my relating patterns, my perspectives, my behaviors?
Allowing ourselves to pay attention at this level may feel a bit threatening at first, depending on how suspicious or out of touch we are with our feelings and other internal dynamics.
loving God with all of our heart and all of our soul precedes loving God with all of our mind.
Something powerfully different happens when we are willing to pay attention to our internal dynamics rather than just reading for information or reading to complete the assigned reading for the day.
Am I being transformed into a more loving person—even in the most challenging of situations—or am I harboring places of bitterness where my spirit is closed?
We need a way of approaching Scripture that will move us very concretely from our overreliance on information gathering to an experience of Scripture as a place of intimate encounter. We need more than a method or a technique that involves asking a different set of questions.
Lectio divina is a practice of divine reading that dates back to the early mothers and fathers of the Christian faith.
through the presence of the Holy Spirit, the Scriptures are indeed alive and active as we engage them for spiritual transformation
Invariably he communicates his love for us in ways that we can hear and experience beyond cognitive knowing.
Lectio involves a slower, more reflective reading of Scripture that helps us to be open to God’s initiative rather than being subject to human agendas—our own or someone else’s.
Lectio divina is experienced in four movements.
When we are just starting out, we concentrate on following the steps and getting everything in the right order. But eventually as we become more comfortable, they become moves in a dance that flows with beauty and pleasure, heart and soul. The moves become very fluid and flow into one another quite naturally.
choose a passage of Scripture no more than six to eight verses in length. We begin with a time of silent preparation (silencio)
read the chosen passage four consecutive times, each time asking a different question that invites us into the dynamic of that move. Each reading is followed by a brief period of silence.
first move is to read (lectio).
The second move is to reflect (meditatio).
read the passage a second time, and this time we reflect on the way our life is touched by this word.
third move is to respond (oratio). Is there an invitation or a challenge for us to respond to? What is our response to God’s invitation? This is the first and unedited response to what we have heard. It is the prayer that comes most naturally in response to what we have heard God say to us, and we allow it to flow freely in the moments of silence that follow.
When our response has subsided, we read the passage one last time, and this time the invitation is contemplatio—to rest in God.
We resolve to carry this word with us and live it out (incarnatio) in our daily life. We continue to listen to it throughout the day as we are led deeper and deeper into its meaning and it begins to live in us.
Preparation (Silencio). Take a moment to come fully into the present. With your eyes closed, let your body relax, and allow yourself to become consciously aware of God’s presence with you.
Read (Lectio): Listen for the word or the phrase that is addressed to you. Turn to the passage and begin to read slowly, pausing between phrases and sentences.
Reflect (Meditatio): How is my life touched by this word? Once you have heard the word that is meant for you, read the passage again, and listen for the way this passage connects with your life.
Respond (Oratio): What is my response to God based on what I have read and encountered?
Rest (Contemplatio): Rest in the Word of God. In this final reading you are invited to release and return to a place of rest in God.
