Thursday, November 5, 2009

One word

J. took this photo in Maui in '05
We attended church with our friends last night. It was a night of worship and communion. Both J. and I really enjoyed it and felt refreshed and renewed. We participated in an activity called Lectio divina.

Lectio divina is a very useful and practical discipline for spiritual growth. Rooted in ancient monasticism, the practice is a fourfold cycle: Reading, Meditation, Prayer, and Contemplation. In fact, the term itself means "sacred reading."

During the scripture reading we were told to think of one word that really stood out to us, as if it were in bold print. Then we mediated on how that word effected our lives, prayed about it and worshiped.

My one word was OBEY. To me, to obey is to completely give my life over to God. No matter how unreasonable, questionable or silly the idea is to myself or others. I am to obey and follow Him and by doing this I will receive many blessings in return.

Hebrews 11:8 (New International Version)

8By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going.

1 John 2:5 (New International Version)

5But if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him:

1 John 3:21-23 (New International Version)

21Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God 22and receive from him anything we ask, because we obey his commands and do what pleases him. 23And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us.


2 comments:

Momto16 said...

That is so interesting- my word was completely different- I had actually TWO words that stood out and I couldn't decide which was more powerful in the moment- but CLEAN and REMAIN
It was really a great experience.
How about J? What was his? Now I am curious! :)

Kim said...

J's was gardener (we read John 15). That is the same word L. thought of too. Hmm, maybe they are thinking they need to do some yard work?!?