Lectio Divina
In Christianity, Lectio Divina (Latin for divine reading) is a traditional practice of scriptural reading, meditation and prayer dating back to the 4
th century
Benedictine monks. It has been practiced by such pastors as John Calvin, Martin Luther, John Wesley and Richard Baxter. Lectio Divina can be done privately, in groups, or in a corporate worship setting and is intended to promote communion with God and to increase the knowledge of His Word. This method of reading, meditation and prayer treats Scripture as the Living Word, which speaks to individuals and to a community.
I. Preparing (Silencio) – Allow a minute of silence to relax the body and open the ears of the heart. Focus on God and come into his presence. This is a time of Gentle praise or surrender in prayer.
II. Listening / Reading (Lectio) – Invite one to read the passage slowly while others follow along listening for a word, phrase or image that strikes them. Give a few minutes to settle on a word… Folks may want to use a journal to focus. Then share around the group briefly their word, phrase of image.
III. Meditating (Meditatio) – Have a different person read the passage, perhaps in
a different version. Have people reflect on “What is God saying in this word… Why did this word, phrase of image speak to you?” Again, give people a couple minutes to reflect. Have each one share their insight.
IV. Contemplating (Contemplatio) – Have another read the passage a third time.
Allow some quiet time of reflection on the question: “From what I have heard and shared what does God want me to do?" Or, "How does God invite me to change?" Share with one another what you heard.
V. Praying (Oratio) – Silent prayer may be a part of the silence throughout the
process. You may invite each one to respond in prayer to what God has spoken to them and others agree. Or have each one pray for the person on their right.
The Ethiopian Eunuch – Acts 8:16-40 August 24, 2014
Worship (worthiness or worth-ship) –
Tithes or Offerings (tenth or freewill giving) –
Preparing (Silencio) –
Listening / Reading (Lectio) –
Acts 8: 26
Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Go south to the road—the desert road—that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.”
27 So he started out, and on his
way he met an Ethiopian eunuch, an important official in charge of all the treasury of the Kandake (which means “queen of the Ethiopians”). This man had gone to Jerusalem to worship,
28 and on his way home was sitting in his chariot
reading the Book of Isaiah the prophet. 29
The Spirit told Philip, “Go to that chariot and stay near it.”
30 Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man
reading Isaiah the prophet. “Do you understand what you are reading?” Philip asked.
31 “How can I,” he said, “unless someone explains it to me?” So he
invited Philip to come up and sit with him. 32
This is the passage of Scripture the eunuch was reading:
“He was led like a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb before its shearer is silent, so he did not open his mouth. 33
In his humiliation he was deprived of justice. Who can speak of his descendants? For his life was taken from the earth.”
34 The eunuch asked Philip, “Tell me, please, who is the prophet talking about,
himself or someone else?” 35
Then Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus.
36 As they traveled along the
road, they came to some water and the eunuch said, “Look, here is water. What can stand in the way of my being baptized?”
38 And he gave orders to stop the
chariot. Then both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water and Philip baptized him.
39 When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord
suddenly took Philip away, and the eunuch did not see him again, but went on his way rejoicing.
40 Philip, however, appeared at Azotus and traveled about,
preaching the gospel in all the towns until he reached Caesarea. [NIV]
What image, word, or phrase struck you?
Worship (worthiness or worth-ship) –
Meditating (Meditatio) – Acts 8:26
But an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip saying, “Get up and go south to the road that descends from Jerusalem to Gaza.” (This is a desert road.)
27 So he got
up and went; and there was an Ethiopian eunuch, a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure; and he had come to Jerusalem to worship,
28 and he was returning and sitting in his chariot,
and was reading the prophet Isaiah. 29
Then the Spirit said to Philip, “Go up and join this chariot.”
30 Philip ran up and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet, and
said, “Do you understand what you are reading?” 31
And he said, “Well, how could I, unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.
32 Now the passage of Scripture which he was reading was this:
“HE WAS LED AS A SHEEP TO SLAUGHTER; AND AS A LAMB BEFORE ITS SHEARER IS SILENT, SO HE DOES NOT OPEN HIS MOUTH. 33
“IN HUMILIATION HIS JUDGMENT WAS TAKEN AWAY; WHO WILL RELATE HIS GENERATION? FOR HIS LIFE IS REMOVED FROM THE EARTH.”
34 The eunuch answered Philip and said, “Please tell me, of whom does the
prophet say this? Of himself or of someone else?” 35
Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning from this Scripture he preached Jesus to him.
36 As they
went along the road they came to some water; and the eunuch *said, “Look! Water! What prevents me from being baptized?”
37 [And Philip said, “If you
believe with all your heart, you may.” And he answered and said, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”]
38 And he ordered the chariot to stop; and they
both went down into the water, Philip as well as the eunuch, and he baptized him.
39 When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord snatched
Philip away; and the eunuch no longer saw him, but went on his way rejoicing. 40
But Philip found himself at Azotus, and as he passed through he kept preaching the gospel to all the cities until he came to Caesarea. [NASB]
What is God saying to you and why?
Worship (worthiness or worth-ship) –
Contemplating (Contemplatio) – Acts 8:26
Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Rise and go toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” This is a desert place.
27 And he
rose and went. And there was an Ethiopian, a eunuch, a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure. He had come to Jerusalem to worship
28 and was returning, seated in his chariot, and he
was reading the prophet Isaiah. 29
And the Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and join this chariot.”
30 So Philip ran to him and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet
and asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?” 31
And he said, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.
32 Now the passage of the Scripture that he was reading was this:
“Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter and like a lamb before its shearer is silent, so he opens not his mouth. 33
In his humiliation justice was denied him. Who can describe his generation? For his life is taken away from the earth.”
34 And the eunuch said to Philip, “About whom, I ask you, does the prophet say
this, about himself or about someone else?” 35
Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning with this Scripture he told him the good news about Jesus.
36 And as
they were going along the road they came to some water, and the eunuch said, “See, here is water! What prevents me from being baptized?”
38 And he
commanded the chariot to stop, and they both went down into the water, Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him.
39 And when they came up out of the water,
the Spirit of the Lord carried Philip away, and the eunuch saw him no more, and went on his way rejoicing.
40 But Philip found himself at Azotus, and as he passed
through he preached the gospel to all the towns
“From what I have heard & shared, what does God want me to do?” Or, “How does God invite me to change?"
Praying (Oratio) –
BI:
Worship (worthiness or worth-ship) –
Grace Church - 10323 28th Ave SW Seattle, WA 98146 (206) 937-8400 gracechurchseattle.org
Pastor Ryan Faust Senior Pastor [email protected] follow on Twitter @RyanJFaust
Pastor Daniel Hill Worship & Assoc. Pastor [email protected]
Pastor Jerry Buell Children’s Ed & Family Ministry [email protected]
Pastor Nathan Schlaud Youth & College Ministry [email protected] follow on Twitter @el_schlaudius
Janis Lemert Community Life Director [email protected]
Let us LOVE God & people by praying for: Kathie Varney and family (passing of her father), Lorraine
Schukar (hip recovery), Diana Martinez (thyroid surgery
recovery), Betty Saunders (dementia), and ongoing health
needs: Kim Smith (seizures), and Martha Miller, prayer for
the family of Grace Church, elders & staff.
Prayer Requests Like to be added to the Prayer Partners distribution list?
Please contact the Church office. Have a prayer request?
Call or email the office during office hours. If the office is
closed, call Barb Stuart 932-7459 or Elsie McCoy 938-0644
who will get your request to our prayer warriors right away.
LOOKING AHEAD
August 24 ······ Home Community Group leaders meeting - 12:30pm in the foyer
Sept 5-6 ········ Iron Sharpens Iron - Men’s Forum
Sept 7 ············ Fall Kick-off - Beginning with a potluck breakfast at 9am
Sept 20 ·········· Living Water - Dinner and Auction - Guatemalan food & great music
June 29, 2014
“There is a tradition (it is not in the Bible)
that the world said about the Christians
in the early church, ‘Behold, how they
love each other.’ As we read Acts and
the epistles, we realize that these early
Christians were really struggling for a
practicing community. We realize
that one of the marks of the early
church was a real community,
a community that reached
down all the way to their
care for each other in
their material needs.”
– Francis Schaeffer
August 24, 2014
Have a pre-1980 vehicle? See Dave May and
bring it to the PICNIC!
MEN’S FORUM SEPT 5 & 6
Iron Sharpens Iron Follow Jesus…then what? Jesus called His
disciples. What did they do? What did He
expect? What did they expect? What
does He expect from YOU? Get strength
and give strength to your brothers; work
together to achieve and accomplish God’s
personal call. Leave mediocrity BEHIND.
Take LIFE to a whole new level.
Awesome fellowship, man food, some
great guest speakers and just the guys.
Friday 6-10pm & Saturday 8am-2pm
Friday dinner, as well as breakfast and
lunch on Saturday. Contact Paul Lang at
(206) 240-8528 or [email protected]
The cost is only $10.
GRIEFSHARE GriefShare is a friendly, caring group of
people who will walk alongside you
through one of life’s most difficult
experiences: death. You don’t have to go
through the grieving process alone. The
next 13 week session begins September
6th. Please see the pamphlet at the
Welcome Center for more information.
AWANA Awana begins on Wednesday, Sept. 10th
at 6:30 pm.
• Early registration discount of $5/child
available through August 31st
• We need YOU to help minister to the
kids. Please prayerfully consider
your involvement
• The Awana Store is in need of kid
friendly donations
There will be a Barbecue on Wednesday,
Sept. 3rd at 6pm to launch youth group
and welcome Awana volunteers. This will
be followed by an orientation on the
upcoming year for Awana volunteers.
LIVING WATER
DINNER and SILENT AUCTION Last year, we quenched the thirst of a
parched Nicaraguan community by God’s
grace and your generous help. This year,
we are excited to have another
opportunity to do the same for our
Guatemalan neighbors, but we need your
help!
Join us for a night of:
GUATEMALAN CUISINE, SILENT AUCTION,
LIVE MUSIC , COMMUNITY, and
ENCOURAGEMENT!
Dinner tickets are a suggested donation of
$15. Proceeds go to the Grace Church
Living Water Missions team and their
upcoming trip to Guatemala in October.
Stop by our table in the foyer to purchase
your ticket(s) to the benefit dinner and
silent auction. You can also talk to us
about donating items for the silent
auction. For more information, contact
Clarence Pascua at (206) 941-8094 or at
HOLIDAY BAZAAR SIGN UPS In preparation for our Holiday Bazaar,
where the proceeds of the table fee &
baked items go to Living Water, sign ups
begin soon. If you are interested in
purchasing a table, you can contact Mona
Johnen at (206)552-6758 or at
SUNDAY NITE WORSHIP ON ALKI Join with others to worship our Lord Jesus
Christ, the ONE who unites us all, Sundays
during the month of august at 8pm on Alki
Beach at 1702 Alki Ave SW, just east of the
bath house. Be sure to carpool or come
early as parking is limited.
THIS WEEK AT GRACE SUNDAY, AUGUST 24
7:00 am Preparing thru Prayer for Worship
- in the sanctuary
10:05 am Preparing thru Prayer for Worship
- in the sanctuary
10:30 am WORSHIP - sanctuary
1st-3rd grade will be dismissed
to Children’s Church
Kid’s bulletins available in the foyer.
12:00 pm Home Community Leaders Mtng
MONDAY, AUGUST 25
Church Office open 9 am to 4 pm
TUESDAY, AUGUST 26
Church Office open 9 am to 4 pm
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 27
Church Office open 9 am to 4 pm
See Pastor Nathan for a summer youth
activity schedule
THURSDAY, AUGUST 28
Church Office open 9 am to 4 pm
8:00 pm College Age Group - Schlauds
FRIDAY, AUGUST 29
Church Office closed
SATURDAY, AUGUST 30
Church Office closed
7:30 am CR Men’s Step Study Group
office will be closed on September 1st for Labor Day
GRACE CHURCH exists to LOVE God
& people, PROCLAIM Christ,
BUILD community, EQUIP the saints,
MULTIPLY ministers, and missionally
SEND out followers of Christ to
be the Church wherever we are.
CONNECT Welcome to Grace! Thanks for joining
us today. Feel free to bring your coffee
into worship and make yourself
comfortable. Take a deep breath, clear
your head, and prepare your heart
and mind to worship our Lord and
Savior, Jesus Christ.
Grace Church is committed to living
authentically in relationship with God
and others. Together we strive to meet
the needs here and around the world.
To learn more, grab a booklet from the
desk in the foyer.
If you would like us to follow up with
you, feel free to fill out this form, tear
it out and drop it at the Welcome
Center or in the offering plate.
today’s date
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