Phil: Paragraph 5- Meditation
Posted on 16. May, 2009 by Jeremy in Meditation
I want to report to you, friends, that my imprisonment here has had the opposite of its intended effect. Instead of being squelched, the Message has actually prospered. All the soldiers here, and everyone else, too, found out that I’m in jail because of this Messiah. That piqued their curiosity, and now they’ve learned all about him. Not only that, but most of the followers of Jesus here have become far more sure of themselves in the faith than ever, speaking out fearlessly about God, about the Messiah.
Suggested Time:
Lectio- (word) 10 minutes
Meditatio- (emotion) 5 minutes
Oratio- (application) 10 minutes
Contemplatio- (stillness) 5 minutes
ps. It helps if you don’t read the comments or study blog before you do the exercise :)
Jeremy
May 16th, 2009
Lectio: curiosity
Meditatio: childlike interest and scientist like fervor all at once
Oratio: I heard God speaking, “Know everything and yet know nothing. Dig to the depth of depths and yet understand that you’ve only scratched the surface. Savor the last drop and yet realize that the refreshment never runs dry. Live in the fulfillment of reaching a new level and yet know that there are limitless levels of growth. Doubt in order to find truth. Believe in order to know freedom.”
Contemplatio: I think I’ve regressed
DanisLinus
May 17th, 2009
Lectio: intended effect
Meditatio: What is the “intended effect” of the pain and trials in my life? There’s this sense of curiosity that the “whys” I often ask are the wrong “whys.”
Oratio: I feel the answer is simply to take us out of the game… to shut us up. That’s the intended effect. Even Paul answered this very question in the next line… “Instead of being squelched…” “Squelched” was the intended effect. It’s to render us useless. Our situations beg the question, “am I still of use to God and in service to others?” I think the answer to the question, “What is the intended effect” in this trial can often lead us to God’s purpose and directive in that his answer is found in the “opposite”. God’s answer is that instead of taking us “out of the game” his Message and Truth actually prosper through our lives.
Contemplatio: rising hope