Friday 16 August 2024

Today is Friday the 16th August in the 19th week of Ordinary Time. One Hope Project sings, ‘Abba Father’. Abba Father, breathe on me Wash me in Your glory When faith is frail You carry me In Your presence I am free Today, we will use the practice of Lectio Divina to pray with our scripture passage. It is a simple yet profound method of prayer found in many traditions of Christian spirituality. The 'lectio' of Lectio Divina is a listening with the heart, as you tend to do quite naturally when you are struck by the beauty of a sunset, as you are mulling over a treasured memory, or as you pay attention to someone you love. In praying this way, you hear a scripture passage or other sacred text and you let God guide your heart. As we prepare to pray with our passage from the Prophet Isaiah, take a moment and invite God to speak to you through the text. Ask for openness. Let yourself settle into an expectant stillness. Listen with your heart to the words. There is no need to rush. No need to get to the end of the passage. When a particular word or phrase strikes you and seems to have some savour, linger with it … Isaiah 12 You will say on that day: I will give thanks to you, O Lord, for though you were angry with me, your anger turned away, and you comforted me. Surely God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid, for the Lord God is my strength and my might; he has become my salvation. With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation. And you will say on that day: Give thanks to the Lord, call on his name; make known his deeds among the nations; proclaim that his name is exalted. Sing praises to the Lord, for he has done gloriously; let this be known in all the earth. Shout aloud and sing for joy, O royal Zion, for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel. … let the word or phrase that is lingering soak into you. Pause with it. Let the word or phrase resonate. Repeat it to yourself, relish it, let it echo and soak into you until the 'flavour' begins to go… … let yourself respond in prayer, in words from the heart, or a space full of silence, or spontaneous, unspoken feeling. We will listen once more to the passage… Continue to speak with God about what has stirred within you during this time of prayer… When you are ready, mark the end of your time of prayer with some closing gesture or words of prayer. Afterwards you might want to make a note of anything that seemed significant. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.