Hello friends,
Welcome to this Lectio Divina on the first part of Psalm 106,
Another one that seems very pertinent to the times in which we find ourselves.
I invite you to gather into this moment,
To begin to open to stillness and quietening,
To begin to sink and soften,
To bring your attention to being held,
Held in divine love,
Sustained,
Nourished.
Let yourself be here.
As we come to this psalm,
I'm going to read it three times.
On this first reading,
Simply let the words come as if they're falling on you as a gentle rain.
Part one of Psalm 106.
Giver of life,
We praise you.
Bestower of all gifts,
We give you thanks.
For your steadfast love endures forever.
Who can tell of your generosity in all generations,
The rich variety of the living cosmos.
Blessed are they who recognize the gift,
And who follow the precepts of your life at all times.
You remember us,
O Beloved,
As we journey through life.
Help us to live the mystery,
That we may fulfill our divine destiny,
That we may co-create with you,
That we may live into our divine birthright.
Stand by us,
That we may become poor in spirit,
Acknowledging our own weaknesses that lead us astray.
Teach us to be patient with ourselves,
That we might offer the gift of patience to others.
Oh,
That we might learn to be calm,
To persevere with utter trust,
As we face the fears that bind us.
We yearn for all that will bring us new life,
We long for your very presence among us.
Comfort us,
O Beloved,
With the tranquility of your spirit,
Lead us into calm waters.
As I read these words a second time,
Notice any that capture your attention.
Giver of life,
We praise you.
Bestower of all gifts,
We give you thanks for your steadfast love endures forever.
Who can tell of your generosity in all generations,
The rich variety of the living cosmos.
Blessed are they who recognize the gift and who follow the precepts of your life at all times.
You remember us,
O Beloved,
As we journey through life.
Help us to live the mystery,
That we may fulfill our divine destiny,
That we may co-create with you,
That we may live into our divine birthright.
Stand by us,
That we may become poor in spirit,
Acknowledging our own weaknesses that lead us astray.
Teach us to be patient with ourselves,
That we might offer the gift of patience to others.
O that we might learn to be calm,
To persevere with utter trust as we face the fears that bind us.
We yearn for all that will bring us new life.
We long for your very presence among us.
Comfort us,
O Beloved,
With the tranquility of your spirit.
Lead us into calm waters.
This final reading is an opportunity to let the words and phrases that captured your attention to deepen within you.
Let them unfurl inside of your being and notice how you want to respond to them.
Become aware of the gift that they're bringing you at this time.
Become aware of the goodness of the Creator,
Of divine love with you through these words.
Giver of life,
We praise you.
Bestower of all gifts,
We give you thanks.
For your steadfast love endures forever.
Who can tell of your generosity in all generations?
The rich variety of the living cosmos.
Blessed are they who recognize the gift and who follow the precepts of your life at all times.
You remember us,
O Beloved,
As we journey through life.
Help us to live the mystery that we may fulfill our divine destiny.
That we may co-create with you.
That we may live into our divine birthright.
Stand by us that we may become poor in spirit.
Acknowledging our own weaknesses that lead us astray.
Teach us to be patient with ourselves.
That we might offer the gift of patience to others.
O that we might learn to be calm,
To persevere with utter trust,
As we face the fears that bind us.
We yearn for all that will bring us new life.
We long for your very presence among us.
Comfort us,
O Beloved,
With the tranquility of your spirit.
Lead us into calm waters.
May these words continue to bring hope and comfort and encouragement.
May they continue to bring their gift to you over the coming days and weeks.
May you know yourself so tenderly and deeply loved and always held in the Beloved.
Amen.
