How to Pray Lectio Divina

How to meet God in the beauty of Scripture

Have you ever wondered how to hear the voice of God? We often wonder what He would say to us if we could sit down with Him over coffee, but did you know that you can actually do that? While you can't physically meet Jesus in your favorite local coffee shop and have a heart-to- heart over a steaming cup of your favorite brew like you can with your best friend, meeting Jesus in Scripture is something you can do almost anywhere! (Coffee optional.)

Scripture is the Word of God and God is waiting to meet you there. If you've ever had a moment sitting at Mass and suddenly the reading seems to speaking directly to you, you've heard the voice of God. Thankfully, such experiences don't have to be confined to Mass. Lectio Divina (meaning "Divine Reading") is a process of prayer where we read Scripture talk to God about what struck our hearts, listen as He replies, and then spend a little quality time together.

Scripture is the Word of God and God is waiting to meet you there.

Lectio is an ancient practice that originated in Benedictine monasteries. It's a method of meditating on Scripture and letting it take root in our hearts. There are four steps (or five, depending on who you talk to) and the whole process takes about twenty minutes, but if you have more time you are absolutely welcome to linger in any one step depending on how the Holy Spirit is moving you.

How to Pray Lectio Divina

Before you begin, pick out the Scripture passage you want to read. When you are first beginning this practice, you might want to pick a story you are familiar with and have had a connection with before. This could help you be better able to enter into the passage since you are already familiar with it. However if you think being super familiar with a passage may hinder your ability to think outside the box for new insights, you are certainly free to pick any passage you want. You also should not pick a whole chapter to pray Lectio with. Try to keep it short- pray with one story at a time so you can really focus in on what is going on. If you really have no idea where to start, you might try starting with one of the Scripture readings from Mass for the day. These are prepared for you into digestible segments and if you read the daily readings every day, you will get a good overview of many different parts of Scripture.

To begin, make the sign of the cross and take a moment to place yourself in the presence of God. Ask the Holy Spirit to come and enlighten your mind and heart and guide your meditation.

1. Lectio- This first step is where you simply read the passage either aloud or to yourself. Be sure to read slowly and deliberately. Typically you would read the passage through three times; first to just get a general sense of what is going on, second being open to a word or phrase that jumps out at you, and the third time to simply rest in it, turning your word or phrase over like a smooth stone in your mind. For those who connect with Ignatian- style imaginative prayer, you may want to take the second or third reading to place yourself in the story- What does it look like? Smell like? Who are you in the scene? What are the people wearing? What do their faces look like? What emotions do you see or feel?

2. Meditatio- The second step is where you begin to reflect on what you've read. You think about the passage like a cow chewing its cud. Look at it from all angles. Ask questions and jot them down if you like to journal. If you're a big journaler, feel free to start writing now. Think about the word or phrase that stuck out to you. How does it connect with what is going on in your life right now? What do the words mean? What is God trying to say to you in this passage? Remain open to the Holy Spirit. He will guide you.

3. Oratio- The third step is prayer. Here you offer all you came up with during your meditation to God as a prayer. Respond to what He has been saying to you and to what the Holy Spirit has been stirring up in you. Put all of what you have thought about into conversation with Him, because really, that's all prayer is- a conversation with God. If you want, you can write this down or simply speak it in your mind.

4. Contemplatio- The fourth step is contemplation which is simply resting with God. Here is where you stop consciously thinking, put down the pen, and let God speak. This step is the most difficult, but also the most rewarding. Place yourself in the presence of God once again, because even in prayer we must be reminded of that, and just rest. Close your eyes and open yourself to hearing the still, small voice of God speaking love and blessing over you.

The final, fifth step is optional, but I think it is helpful to teach you how to let your prayer overflow into your life.

5. Actio- The fifth step is action where you make resolutions based on your prayer. This is where we implement a plan for ourselves to apply what we received in prayer to the way we live. If you felt called in your prayer to do something, for example reaching out to a friend, donating time, talent, or treasure to a ministry, learning more about a topic or practice, etc. put that thing on your to- do list for the day and actually do it. Perhaps your prayer revolved around rooting out lies or habitual sins or even working through a specific situation in your life. Make an action plan to deal with that thing and go do it. Prayer is not meant to be kept within our quiet internal prayer time but is meant to bear fruit in our lives.

Prayer is meant to bear fruit in our lives.

Lectio Divina can also be prayed in a group setting. You can have everyone reflect on the same passage or share insights from different passages. Be sure to pick one person to lead the prayer and gently invite people to move to the next the step. You should also allow some time at the end for people to share their insights and reflections from their prayer.

Also, while it's not technically Lectio Divina, you can use the Lectio process to reflect on other written media such praise and worship songs, hymn lyrics, spiritual books, and poems. You'll find these are also extremely rich sources of prayer. You can also use a similar process to pray with art, called Visio Divina. (You can find our article on the Visio Divina process here.) Have you ever prayed this way with Scripture before? What are your favorite passages of Scripture to pray Lectio with? Share with us in the comments!