“The nature of water is soft, that of stones is hard; but if a bottle is hung above the stone allowing the water to fall drop by drop, it wears away the stone. So it is with the Word of God; it is soft and our heart is hard, but the one who hears the word of God often, opens his heart to God.” – Abba Poemen, 5th Century

“Be careful as you read. Take in fully, gently and carefully what you are reading. Taste it and digest it as you read. In the past, it may have been your habit while reading to move very quickly from one verse of Scripture to another until you had read the whole passage….If you read quickly, it will benefit you little. You will be like a bee that merely skims the surface of the flower. Instead, in the new way of reading, you must become as the bee that penetrates into the depths of the flower. You plunge deeply within to remove its deepest nectar….Plunge into the very depths of the words you read until revelation, like a sweet aroma, breaks out upon you.” – Jeanne Guyon 17th Century

“Happy are those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or take the path that sinners tread, or sit in the seat of scoffers; but their delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law they meditate day and night.” - Psalm 1:2

God speaks in 3 primary ways: the Spoken Word (Creation), the Word made Flesh (Jesus), and the Written Word (Bible)

Meditating on Scripture

“A prayerful rumination upon God, his word, and his world”

Information vs. Transformation

In Study:

• Dissect the text (grammar, culture, word meaning)

• Analyze

• Bible dictionary, etc.

• Read as an outsider

Study forms the “safety net” for meditation

In Meditation:

• Savor the text

• Listen for God speaking

• Read Slow

• Become a part of the text, experience it

• Reading for depth not breadth

• Reading not to master the text, but to be mastered by it

One is not better than the other (they actually support one another), however if we never approach God’s word from nothing but an analytical intellectual approach then we will most likely never be changed by it.

Meditation & Obedience

It has been said that longest distance in the world is the distance from the head to the heart.

Meditation is the practice that helps us to move the Word from our head to our heart.

When the Word is then in our heart the next step is for it to change the way we live our lives. Meditation must result in obedience.

Joshua 1:8

Practicing Meditation: Lectio Divina

Latin for “divine reading”

“It invites us into God’s presence to listen for his particular, loving word to me at this particular moment in time.” – Adele Calhoun

The key is to be open to hear God afresh in Scripture

5 Movements of Lectio Divina:

• Silence – quiet preparation of the heart. Slow down, relax. Pray and ask God to speak to you (Psalm 119:18)

• Read – read slowly and out loud. Be attentive to any word or phrase or sentence that pops out to you. If one does then stop and listen to what God may be trying to say to you. Don’t analyze.

• Meditate – read again out loud. Reflect on the importance of the words that stand out to you.

• Respond – pray. Read the Scripture again. Become aware of the feelings that have come up and talk to God about them.

• Contemplate – rest and wait in God’s presence. Allow the Word some time to sink into you, to take root. You may want to consider something that will help you to continue to dwell on this word as you go.

If God doesn’t seem to speak to you plainly and immediately, it’s ok. Sometimes God speaks clearly, but sometimes the Word must simply take root in our heart for a future purpose.

Additional Resources

Spiritual Disciplines Bible Studies: Study & Meditation by Jan Johnson
Historic Creeds: A Journal by Kenneth Boa
Eat This Book: A Conversation in the Art of Spiritual Reading by Eugene Peterson

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