Lectio Divina and Journaling {Day 27}

We have these different personalities, you and I. We have these different life experiences. We have these different spiritual gifts. We have this uniqueness, created by God. And that very idea of being created in His image also gives us unity. One part of what I love about writing on different soul practices is that one will resonate with you and others won’t. God made us and designed us and he knows what will be a catalyst in growing close to him.

That is a long introduction to saying that today’s topic is what comes most ‘natural’ to me. Journaling and Lectio Divina. There is something about how I am made and what my story has been, that these two practices usher me into God’s presence. They remind me of truth and that God is for me. They are avenues for me to disconnect from the world and to reconnect with God. When I feel myself become easily frustrated, I know it is time to journal. When I am believing lies, I know it is time pray through scriptures. And why oh why do I not always do what I know is good to do? That’s for another time.

(PS Even when certain disciplines don’t draw me in, there is value in practicing them. They stretch and grow us and perhaps help us see attributes of God we don’t normally notice,)

Journaling

This is such a personal endeavor and can look so different from person to person. Underneath different styles and formats is the idea that we sometimes don’t know what we are thinking until we write it. The same applies for journaling scripture, as we write God gives us insight on the verse or passage we are recording. We might find ourselves in a dialogue with God. We may find ourselves writing the same word over and over, pondering the way it is speaking to our soul.

“I write to find out what I didn’t know I know.”  Robert Frost.

This quote rings true for me when I journal, a prayer offering to God of things I didn’t even know were going on in my soul. Over a year ago I had the opportunity to share at The Gift of Writing on how the busyness of life fights against time for quiet reflection, but that writing is part of helping us figure out what makes us come alive. You can read it here  as it states much of my heartbeat for journaling and how God has used it to heal and to draw me closer to him.

Lectio Divina

Lectio is Latin for reading. Divina means divine or holy. When we talk of Lectio Divina, we are talking of holy reading. It is a practice of scriptural reading, meditation and prayer. It does not treat scripture as a text to study, but rather as the living word.

Lectio has four steps (although I don’t always do in order and sometimes combine steps)

1. Read
2. Meditate
3. Pray
4. Contemplate

Closely related to Lectio, is Ignatian prayer where you use your imagination to place yourself in the story. What sights do you see? What sounds do you hear? What do you feel? What would you say to Jesus?

Here is an example of what praying (a combination of Lectio and Ignatian prayer) might look like.

Read slowly the following passage from Luke 5. As you read notice what words and phrases jump out to you.

“One day Jesus was teaching, and Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there. They had come from every village of Galilee and from Judea and Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was with Jesus to heal the sick. ¹⁸ Some men came carrying a paralyzed man on a mat and tried to take him into the house to lay him before Jesus. ¹⁹ When they could not find a way to do this because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him on his mat through the tiles into the middle of the crowd, right in front of Jesus. ²⁰ When Jesus saw their faith, he said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.” ²¹ The Pharisees and the teachers of the law began thinking to themselves, “Who is this fellow who speaks blasphemy? Who can forgive sins but God alone?” ²² Jesus knew what they were thinking and asked, “Why are you thinking these things in your hearts? ²³ Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? ²⁴ But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the paralyzed man, “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” ²⁵ Immediately he stood up in front of them, took what he had been lying on and went home praising God.²⁶ Everyone was amazed and gave praise to God. They were filled with awe and said, “We have seen remarkable things today.”

Read the passage a second time. This time, imagine yourself there. What does it look like, smell like? What are the crowds like? As you think of the various characters in the story (the paralytic, the friends, the disciples, the Pharisees, the crowd), who do you most identify with today as you read?

Read the passage a third time. Pay attention to any questions that rise up. Any emotions.

Now imagine, whomever you picture yourself being in the passage, that slowly the crowds disappear. You are left alone with Jesus.

What do you want to say to him?

What does he say in return?

After a few minutes of prayer (what you say to him and what he responds with), what are you feeling prompted to do? Sometimes this is confession. Sometimes it is an application. Sometimes it is comfort. Sometimes it is an action. Allow God’s word to speak to you.

Prayer is a huge category and could be something we talk about for a long time. My hope in yesterday and today was to zero in on a couple of prayer practices that I believe will help us live in truth and fight off the voice of fear. The more time we spend with Jesus, the more his voice becomes the one that guides us.

If you try out journaling or reflective prayer, I would love to hear your experience of it!

I am participating in Write 31 Days. Click right here to see all the amazing topics!  I am writing on 31 Beauty Full Days.  You can read the intro post here.  And you can also always click on the button on the sidebar to see all posts in the series.