lectio divina

I picked this up from a book by David Crowder called, "Praise Habit." Lectio divina (or spiritual reading) is a practice that has been around for a while. It's a way we can deliberately read scripture and see what the Lord is revealing to us. There are four parts; read, think, pray, and live.


Read- Immerse yourself in His word. Read consistently and intentionally. Carve out the time to do so.

"Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. ¹⁹ Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. ²⁰ Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates, ²¹ so that your days and the days of your children may be many in the land the LORD swore to give your ancestors, as many as the days that the heavens are above the earth." Deuteronomy 11: 18-20

Think- Spend time in specific passages not taking for granted that you have understood what you have just read. Think of someone who visits the Grand Canyon. They pull up, look around, snap a few pictures, hit the gift shop and take off. Now think about the person who finds the place they can be away from the crowds. They spend time soaking in the sights, sounds even smells. Our approach to the word should be like that.  We shouldn't just read a passage, quickly decide what they mean and head to the gift shop. Read a passage and look for words that jump out at you. Ask why they jump out. Think about how it applies to your life today. Chew on the word.

Pray- Focus on declaring to God what was revealed to you as you read. Ask Him to help you understand it. Proclaim the characteristics of the God you just read about. The very nature of our God is revealed in His word. This is how we get to know Him!

Live- The more you read, the more you ask the Lord to reveal Himself, the more these concepts will be reflected in your daily lives. When you live the word, you truly live."

Not sure where to start? Try some Pslams first. Pslam 23, 33, 34, 40 are just a few.