Lectio Divina Prayer || John 21:1-14

You will be guided through a Bible-inspired prayer (in Latin: "Lectio Divina") based on John 21:1-14. This meditative practice is perfect for both beginners to Lectio and those who have some experience practicing this style of prayer.

Transcript

Welcome to this Lectio Divina meditation.

I'm glad that you've joined us.

For a more complete description of what Lectio Divina is,

Please listen to our first meditation on Mark 4.

For this prayer,

Here is a short recap.

Lectio Divina in Latin means divine reading.

It is an ancient prayer practice dating back to the 3rd century.

Lectio Divina invites us to experience the Bible as a living word,

A conversation with the Spirit of God.

Through the Bible's stories and letters and poems,

We hear God's voice and receive personal guidance.

In this meditation,

You'll seek deeper meaning by noticing a word or a phrase or an image that stands out to you,

Trusting that God will speak directly to you.

Let's begin.

First,

Find a comfortable position,

Either sitting up or laying down.

Next,

Through the breath,

We are going to invite our body to stimulate the parasympathetic nervous system,

Which is the system most active when we are calm and at rest.

Doing so before this meditation will make us even more sensitive to the deeper meaning of this reading and what we are hearing from God.

Let's take three relaxing breaths.

Five seconds of inhale through our nose and five seconds of exhale through our mouths.

Go ahead and begin.

I'll be guiding you through the five rhythms of our reading,

Which include part one,

Centering and preparing ourselves to hear the reading.

Part two,

Listening to the reading itself.

Part three,

Spending time in contemplation.

Part four,

Responding to God in prayer.

Part five,

Finally resting in God's peace and love.

You will hear a gentle bell that will focus your attention on the next rhythm of our meditation.

Please know that there is no wrong way to encounter God through Lectio.

Even if your mind wanders,

You are invited to either call yourself back to focusing on our reading or to approach the wandering with curiosity.

Maybe the wandering is part of your experience of hearing God speak.

So prepared with an understanding of what is to come,

Let us encounter the living word together.

Part one,

Centering and preparing.

In these next 30 seconds,

I invite you to either out loud or silently let God know that you intend to turn your heart,

Mind,

And spirit toward what God wants to speak to you.

Part two,

The reading.

I will read the passage twice.

Notice what word,

Phrase,

Or image stands out to you.

What resonates or unsettles you?

If you see text in your mind as you hear it read,

What shimmers or is highlighted?

You will carry that word,

Phrase,

Or image to the next part of our meditation.

A reading from John 21,

Verses 1 through 14 from the updated NRSV.

After these things,

Jesus showed himself again to the disciples by the sea of Tiberias,

And he showed himself in this way.

Gathered there together were Simon Peter,

Thomas,

Called the twin,

Nathaniel of Cana and Galilee,

The sons of Zebedee,

And two others of his disciples.

Simon Peter said to them,

I am going fishing.

And they said to him,

We will go with you.

They went out and got into the boat,

But that night they caught nothing.

Just after daybreak,

Jesus stood on the beach,

But the disciples did not know that it was Jesus.

Jesus said to them,

Children,

You have no fish,

Have you?

They answered him,

No.

He said to them,

Cast the net to the right side of the boat,

And you will find some.

So they cast it,

And now they were not able to haul it in because there were so many fish.

That disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter,

It is the Lord.

When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord,

He put on his outer garment,

For he had taken it off,

And jumped into the sea.

But the other disciples came in the boat,

Dragging the net full of fish,

For they were not far from the land,

Only about a hundred yards off.

When they had gone ashore,

They saw a charcoal fire there with fish on it and bread.

Jesus said to them,

Bring some of the fish that you have just caught.

So Simon Peter went aboard and hauled the net ashore full of large fish,

153 of them.

And though there were so many,

The net was not torn.

Jesus said to them,

Come and have breakfast.

Now none of the disciples dared to ask him,

Who are you?

Because they knew it was the Lord.

Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them,

And did the same with the fish.

This was now the third time that Jesus appeared to the disciples after he was raised from the dead.

And now the second reading.

After these things,

Jesus showed himself again to the disciples by the sea of Tiberias,

And he showed himself in this way.

Gathered there together were Simon Peter,

Thomas called the twin,

Nathaniel of Cana and Galilee,

The sons of Zebedee,

And two others of his disciples.

Simon Peter said to them,

I am going fishing.

And they said to him,

We will go with you.

They went out and got into the boat,

But that night they caught nothing.

Just after daybreak,

Jesus stood on the beach,

But the disciples did not know that it was Jesus.

Jesus said to them,

Children,

You have no fish,

Have you?

They answered him,

No.

He said to them,

Cast the net to the right side of the boat,

And you will find some.

So they cast it,

And now they were not able to haul it in because there were so many fish.

That disciple whom Jesus loves said to Peter,

It is the Lord.

When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord,

He put on his outer garment,

For he had taken it off and jumped into the sea.

But the other disciples came in the boat,

Dragging the net full of fish,

For they were not far from the land,

Only about a hundred yards off.

When they had gone ashore,

They saw a charcoal fire there with fish on it and bread.

Jesus said to them,

Bring some of the fish that you have just caught.

So Simon Peter went aboard and hauled the net ashore full of large fish,

A hundred fifty-three of them,

And though there were so many,

The net was not torn.

Jesus said to them,

Come and have breakfast.

Now none of the disciples dared to ask him,

Who are you?

Because they knew it was the Lord.

Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them and did the same with the fish.

This was now the third time that Jesus appeared to the disciples after he was raised from the dead.

Now it's time to focus on the word,

Phrase,

Or image that stood out to you.

Bring it to your attention and repeat it slowly in your mind,

Noticing what thoughts or feelings arise.

Without worrying about how you're praying,

Simply have a conversation with God,

Either aloud or silently,

About what captured your attention from the reading and what thoughts or feelings came up during the contemplation.

Now that you've had a conversation with God,

Just sit together with God.

It's not necessary to do anything.

Just continue being present with God.

If thoughts or feelings arise,

That's okay.

God might have more to say.

If silence is difficult for you,

As it is for so many of us,

Feel free to focus on your breath or the music that you hear.

Finally,

Let's close with the Lord's Prayer together.

I'll be using the Reformed Church version,

But feel free to substitute words from whichever version is most familiar to you.

Our Father in heaven,

Hallowed be your name.

Your kingdom come,

Your will be done on earth as in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread.

Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us.

Save us from the time of trial and deliver us from evil.

For the kingdom,

The power,

And the glory are yours now and forever.

Amen.

Reviews

Good instruction, nicely paced, calm soothing voice. Thank you!

Thank you.

I enjoyed approaching scripture in this way. This is so interactive and thoughtful. Thank you for sharing 🙏🏽

Very nice lectio. Thanks

Helpful...

I hope there will be more to come . So good!

Beautifully done 🙏🏻 thank you for this stillness where we meet God.
May He continue to bless you

Thank you for this offering. I enjoyed the version of the scripture you used. 💝🙏