Gathering
Opening Prayer:
Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning: Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them, that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life, which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Begin with brief check-ins and the opening questions below:
Opening Questions:
How has it been practicing zimzum discipleship and lectio divina? What have you noticed when you have lingered with scripture using lectio divina? Have you been able to find space in your life to pray through scripture?
Reading with Lectio Divina
- Read the text below from 2 Timothy 3:15-17 slowly aloud. Sit for a time and notice where your heart takes you.
- Share a word or phrase that you noticed. Next, meditate on that word or phrase for 4 minutes. Or perhaps imagine taking on a role in this narrative and playing the story over again in your mind during this time.
- Pray the passage aloud slowly again, or simply pray the word or phrase that has taken your attention.
- Consider together how this passage might lead you to live more faithfully as a disciple of Jesus, and let the Spirit guide you as to next steps for contemplatively living this passage.
2 Timothy 3:15-17 (The Message Bible)
There’s nothing like the written Word of God for showing you the way to salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. Every part of Scripture is God-breathed and useful one way or another—showing us truth, exposing our rebellion, correcting our mistakes, training us to live God’s way. Through the Word we are put together and shaped up for the tasks God has for us.
Content Study
- Watch a short video from Erik Peterson on Lectio Divnia. www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHW4Eo_OA64
- Reflect on the video together. What did you notice? What caught you?
Reflection Questions
- Pastor Eric Peterson says his dad Eugene Peterson gave him the advice of getting the biblical text into his congregation, because it has “the power to transform us from the inside out.” What scripture or biblical story has gotten in you and transformed you? How did it do this?
- Eric Peterson describes lectio divina as different from the regular way we consume texts in this era when we often seek to inform our minds, rather, he says, lectio can form our souls. Reflect on the many texts you consume in your life—perhaps online news, podcasts, books. In considering zimzum discipleship, how might you need to intentionally find some space from these for meditating on scripture and the betterment of your soul?
- St. Paul’s message to Timothy in 2 Timothy 3 states that scripture can “train us to live God’s way.” If you had to distill God’s way for a friend of no faith tradition, what would you say? How would you explain to them the way scripture has trained you to live in that way?
- Peterson suggests that we can’t read the word of God like it’s fast food eaten on the fly, but that we should treat it like a gourmet feast. Describe a time you had a sumptuous meal. What were important aspects of that event? Can you relate that to the invitation to read scripture with more care using lectio devina?
- Guigo II, a monk in the 12th century, describes the four actions of lectio divina, in this way: Reading puts the solid food in our mouth; meditation helps us chew it and breaks it down; prayer lets us obtain the flavor of it; and contemplative living is the sweetness which makes us glad and refreshes us. Of these four actions, which resonates most with you? Why?
Final Reflections
- What has captured your heart or your imagination in today’s discussion?
- Where have you seen God—or Love—recently?
- What might you intentionally do over the next 2-4 weeks to bring you closer to God?
Closing Prayer
Almighty and Eternal God, you sacrificially withdrew from a place within yourself in order to create the entirety of the cosmos so that you might be in relationship with us and all of creation. Help us to embrace zimzum discipleship and make space in our own lives, that we might more faithfully follow in the way of Jesus who gave of himself for the salvation and healing of the whole world. All this we ask in the name of the Risen Christ, who dwells endlessly with you and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
