"Whoever receives you receives me..."
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We invite you to a few minutes of silence before we begin our prayer time together.
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We invite you to a few minutes of silence before we begin our prayer time together.
Take a deep breath and breathe in the breath of God, knowing by faith that God breathes into us the breath of life.
CONTEMPLATIVE / SILENT PRAYER
Our Centering Prayer sit is 20 - 30 minutes sounded by the chime/chant. At the end of the Prayer sit, we will linger in silence a few minutes, then follow by praying together the Our Father.
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LECTIO DIVINA: Listening to the Word of God with the ears of our heart [See Chopping Wood (or Carrots) Under the Gaze of God for a discussion of Lectio Divina].
First reading & silent reflection: Reflect in silence.
LECTIO: Matthew 10. Jesus said: "...whoever does not take up his cross and follow
after Me is not worthy of Me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever
loses his life for My sake shall find it./Whoever receives you receives me, and
whoever receives Me receives the One who sent Me."
Second reading & reflection: What word or phrase catches your attention? Share or pass.
Third reading & reflection: How does this word or phrase touch your life? Share or pass.
Fourth and last reading & silent reflection: How is God inviting you to grow? We will reflect in silence for a few moments before we move from Lectio Prayer to the teaching by Father Keating.
Teaching: A part of the process of
letting go is to forgive ourselves and to trust God enough that, if we are
sorry for our misbehaviors, God has completely forgotten about them and
would prefer that we would too. To live in the present moment means that
the past has been integrated into who we are now. To think back would be a
foolish thing to do because we can never judge the dispositions that we had
then with how we now would judge certain behaviors. ... Part of acceptance is
just to be still and surrender to God knowing that all God wants is our love. Death and Dying, Father Thomas Keating.
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We now take some time to share our thoughts and reflections on our own spiritual journey and our prayer practice. Followed by brief prayers of intercession. Share or pass.
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Go in the name of Christ Jesus to love and serve the Lord. Thanks be to God!
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[This is an adapted format courtesy of Martha Johnston, Contemplative Outreach of Maryland and Washington, DC]
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