Hello friends and welcome to this Lectio Divina on Psalm 21.
I'm recording outside so you will hear the sounds of nature,
Of life,
There may be a car that goes by,
An aeroplane overhead.
I invite you to welcome these sounds and to let them enrich this Lectio Divina practice.
And as we come to this practice I invite you to stillness.
You may want to close your eyes.
Letting the external fade away and coming inside yourself.
Aware of your breath,
Aware of your body in the room,
Wherever you find yourself.
It may help you to take some deeper,
Wider breaths.
And to let your shoulders drop,
To let your body sink,
To know yourself held and supported.
Receive the grace to be present in this moment.
Nothing else required but to simply be here.
Letting go of the day so far and of what's to come,
Simply arriving and being in this moment,
In this space.
Know beloved that you are loved,
That you are seen,
That you are known.
Spend a few moments welcoming and allowing this love to every part of you.
As we come to this Lectio Divina,
I'm going to read the Psalm three times.
On this first reading I invite you to simply let the words come as a rain without connecting or attaching to any in particular.
Psalm 21.
In your strength I rejoice,
O my beloved,
And in your presence my heart finds rest.
You heed the heart's desire,
Answering the cry of the soul,
And you bestow blessing upon blessing.
Your love is as a crown of fine gold upon my head.
I asked for life and life you did provide.
Eternal life comes through your love.
All glory be yours,
O loving presence.
Splendor and majesty are your raiment.
Yes,
Your blessings are forever.
You delight me with the joy of your presence.
Forever I will put my trust in you.
And as I abandon myself to you in love,
I am assured of peace.
You root out my fears,
Standing firm beside me as I face the shadows within.
Like a blazing sun your light shines.
My fears flee from your sight.
Your fire consumes them.
Generations to come will sing to your glory in gratitude and joy for creation's bountiful gifts of life.
For you put fears to flight that love and justice might reign.
All praise be yours,
O wondrous one.
Forever will I be grateful and give witness to your peace and love that frees us.
And on this second reading,
I invite you to notice any words or phrases that capture your attention or stand out to you.
In your strength I rejoice,
O my beloved.
And in your presence my heart finds rest.
You heed the heart's desire,
Answering the cry of the soul.
And you bestow blessing upon blessing.
Your love is as a crown of fine gold upon my head.
I asked for life and life you did provide.
Eternal life comes through your love.
All glory be yours,
O loving presence.
Splendor and majesty are your raiment.
Yes,
Your blessings are forever.
You delight me with the joy of your presence.
Forever I will put my trust in you.
And as I abandon myself to you in love,
I am assured of peace.
You root out my fears,
Standing firm beside me as I face the shadows within.
Like a blazing sun,
Your light shines.
My fears flee from your sight.
Your fire consumes them.
Generations to come will sing to your glory.
In gratitude and joy for creation's bountiful gifts of life.
For you put fears to flight,
That love and justice might reign.
All praise be yours,
O wondrous one.
Forever will I be grateful and give witness to your peace and love that frees us.
And this third and final reading is an opportunity to welcome those words or phrases that captured your attention.
To welcome them to go deeper,
To bring you what you need,
To bring their offering,
To bring you an invitation.
Notice how they make you feel.
Notice how you want to respond to them.
In your strength I rejoice,
O my beloved.
And in your presence my heart finds rest.
You heed the heart's desire,
Answering the cry of the soul.
And you bestow blessing upon blessing.
Your love is as a crown of fine gold upon my head.
I asked for life and life you did provide.
Eternal life comes through your love.
All glory be yours,
O loving presence.
Splendor and majesty are your raiment.
Yes,
Your blessings are forever.
You delight me with the joy of your presence.
Forever I will put my trust in you as I abandon myself to you in love.
I am assured of peace.
You root out my fears,
Standing firm beside me as I face the shadows within.
Like a blazing sun your light shines.
My fears flee from your sight.
Your fire consumes them.
Generations to come will sing to your glory,
In gratitude and joy for creation's bountiful gifts of life.
For you put fears to flight that love and justice might reign.
All praise be yours,
O wondrous one.
Forever will I be grateful and give witness to your peace and love that frees us.
I invite you to linger with the words and phrases that resonated with you.
You may want to re-listen to them.
You may simply want to sit with them and let them bring their gift.
You may want to journal.
You may want to paint or draw or move.
Let your response come naturally.
And let your palms be open to receive what you need from those words,
From those phrases.
May you be blessed.
May you know love and hope and grace.
Amen.
