Lectio Divina Template 108

   "You send forth your Spirit."

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.

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LECTIO: from Psalm 104

25 O Lord, how manifold are your works! 

          in wisdom you have made them all;

          the earth is full of your creatures.

26 Yonder is the great and wide sea

          with its living things too many to number, 

          creatures both small and great.

27 There move the ships,

         and there is that Leviathan, 

         which you have made for the sport of it.

28 All of them look to you 

          to give them their food in due season.

29 You give it to them; they gather it; 

          you open your hand, and they are filled with good things.

30 You hide your face, and they are terrified; 

          you take away their breath,

          and they die and return to their dust.

31 You send forth your Spirit, and they are created;

          and so you renew the face of the earth.

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: 

Centering Prayer is focused on the heart of the Christian mystery, which is Christ’s passion, death, and resurrection. Each time we consent to a new light on our weakness and powerlessness, we are in a deeper place with Christ. . . . Christ in his passion is the greatest teacher of who God is. Sheer humility. Total selflessness. Absolute service. Unconditional love. The essential meaning of the Incarnation is that this love is totally available. Centering Prayer is simply a humble method of trying to access that infinite goodness by letting go of ourselves. Consent to God’s presence and action symbolized by the sacred word is nothing else than self-surrender and trust.

                                 Thomas Keating, Intimacy with God, 35.

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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]