Lectio Divina
1. First, select a passage of the Bible. In this specific exercise, I have chosen 1 Corinthians 13.4-8. 4Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 8Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away.
2. Spend a minute or two just relaxing and breathing deeply.
3. First reading. Read the passage through, one time, slowly. Pause between each clause (for example, “love is patient,” [pause] “love is kind,” [pause]. After you finish this first reading, be silent for a minute or two.
4. Second reading. Read the text slowly once again, pausing between phrases. But this time pause even longer and be aware if any of the words or phrases catch your attention, or seem to stand out in some way. Make a mental note of those. After you finish the second reading, write down those special words or phrases.
5. Third reading. Reread the passage up to the word or phrase that touched you in some way. When you reach that word or hrase, stop and repeat it a few times.
6. Pondering. Reflect for a while on the phrase that moved you. Repeat it a few more times. Let the words interact with your thoughts, your memories or any other Bible passages that come to mind. Let it touch your heart, desires and fears. Begin to wonder, what might God want to say to me specifically?
7. Prayer. Turn that last question into a prayer asking God, “what is the word you have for me in this passage, God? Is there anything you want to say to me today?” Listen. Write down anything you sense God might be saying to you.
8. Rest. Be still and silent for a while. Enjoy being in the presense of god. In this step you move from doing to being. Simply be for awhile.
9. Response. Ask yourself and God, What am I being called to do as a result of the word I have been given? Perhaps you are feeling challenged to love God more, or to accept some aspect of who you are, or to serve someone you know, or to begin changing some aspect of your character. Whatever it is, write it out. “Today God is calling me to be a more patient person. Be with me God, and teach me how.” Thank God for the word and calling you have been given.
Lectio Divina is a very personal activity, so I cannot predict exactly what you will experience, nor should I. I imagine God has a specific word just for you. However, the passage I have chosen for you deals specifically with love. First Corinthians 13.4-8 is well known because it is read at many weddings. The context of the passage is not about the love between a husband and a wife (though that fits!), but rather Paul is writing about how to live together in Christian community. The central point is that love is at the core of our life together. Elsewhere we read that we ought to love one another as God has loved us (1 John 4.11).
We also read that “God is love” (1 John 4.8). It is possible to insert God for the word love in the passage from 1 Corinthians.
God is patient, God is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. God does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. God never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away.
You might enjoy reading over this passage a few times this week. I have said that God is love, but often we don’t know that means. This passage explains what true love is.
Taken from “The Good and Beautiful God: Falling in Love with the God Jesus Knows” by James Bryan Smith, 2009, IVP Press, p. 108-111.
