Introduction

Central to our life of faith is our prayer practice. It is absolutely essential for us to pray regularly, because this is how we talk to and listen for God. Each of us will have a unique way of praying that fits with who we are, but to find it we have to try out different kinds of prayer – give them a chance, see if they work.

The prayer form called Lectio Divina is a good kind of prayer to try, because every personality type will find something in it that works for them. For the thinking-oriened person it offers pondering. For the feeling-oriented person it offers the opportunity to engage the heart. For the person who finds deep meaning in the phenomena of the world it offers a savoring of what is. And for the intuitive, it offers the opportunity to engage the imagination. It also gently stretches us in conversation with God.

Lent is a season in which intentionally to deepen our relationship with God “by self-examination and repentance; by prayer, fasting, and self-denial; and by reading and meditating on God's holy Word.” (Ash Wednesday service, BCP pg. 265). The Lectio for Lent program is a simple way to do many of these things.

Here's how it will go. We'll actually start now, in Epiphany, to prepare. This Sunday after the 9 am service we will meet to discuss the basics of praying: how to set aside time and a place to pray, what issues might get in the way of prayer and how to deal with them, and a little bit about how to pray with children of different ages. We'll talk about separate and shared prayer time for couples as well.

Connecting face to face is the best way to share this kind of information – but if, for some reason, you can't make this meeting here on this blog you can get the basic material we discuss. There will be a way at this site for you to ask questions and share ideas and insights. And, hopefully, as we go along we will post links for further information and other resources here as well.

On February 4 we will learn the procedure for Lectio Divina. We will practice a Lectio together. Then we will assign passages from Scripture for you to use in your Lectio for the following two weeks. Already you can see how this prayer practice is also a way to read and meditate on God's holy Word.

The blog site will be your backup place to go for information and to share problems, insights, and so forth.

Every Second and Fourth Sunday during Lent we will meet to share how the process is going and to receive new Scriptural passages. On the final Sunday we meet we will have a last set of Scriptural passages, and by then, March 18, you will have fine-tuned the practice through conversations with us in person or at the blog site so that it really fits you. You'll have a sense of whether you want to go on with this form of prayer or not. There may be other forms you would like to explore. We can give you ideas and resources.