Lectio & Labyrinth: A Peace Walk

If we have no peace, 

it is because we have forgotten 

that we belong to each other. 

~Mother Teresa

The 23^rd Psalm

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

He maketh me to lie down in green pastures:

he leadeth me beside the still waters.

He restoreth my soul:

he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness

for his name's sake.

Yea, though I walk

through the valley of the shadow of death,

I will fear no evil: for thou art with me;

thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

Thou preparest a table before me

in the presence of mine enemies:

thou anointest my head with oil;

my cup runneth over.

Surely goodness and mercy 
shall follow me

all the days of my life:

and I will dwell 
in the house of the Lord for ever.  
(King James Version)

Still waters ... what an image!  Psalm 23, especially the version in the old poetic King James version, is well loved for its ability to comfort the afflicted, those who are living in chaos for it speaks of God's enduring presence even at times when we feel alone and lonely in our distress.  It evokes the peace of God that surpasses all understanding.  (see Philippians 4:7)

Last Sunday was the International Day of Prayer for Peace and I've been extending my prayers for peace all week.  This day is observed to encourage worldwide, spiritual observations for peace and nonviolence, by all religious and spiritually based groups and individuals, and by all men, women, and children who seek peace in the world and with all God’s creation.  Think of the word, Shalom, the Jewish word for peace.  Shalom is not simply an emotion or a feeling of calm or disconnection, shalom is manifested in relationships found in community.  Shalom is communal harmony.  

Peace, in the sense of Shalom, reminds me of the African concept of Ubuntu which means to me "I am what I am because of what we all are together."   Can you hear echoes of my entrenchment in my culture's deep sense of independence and individualism?  I need Ubuntu to curb that overwhelming sense that "it's all about me."  Archbishop Desmond Tutu says this about Ubuntu: 

"We say a person is a person through other persons. We don't come fully formed into the world. We learn how to think, how to walk, how to speak, how to behave, indeed how to be human from other human beings. We need other human beings in order to be human. We are made for togetherness, we are made for family, for fellowship, to exist in a tender network of interdependence."  (quote found in Ubuntu: I in You and You in Me by Michael Battle, page 54)

With a sense of Peace, Shalom, and Ubuntu enveloping your mind, I invite you to sink into your heart, settle into a place of loving openness within yourself and use a simple Breath Prayer to center yourself on God's enduring presence.  Try this one or allow one to emerge as you breathe in and breathe out.   (I have found that six to eight syllables is best for breathing but a longer prayer often speaks what we need to hear for ourselves … simply be authentic with your breath prayer)

Breathing in ... God of Shalom (a name for or image of God)
Breathing out ... Make me a Peace-Bringer (a desire of your heart)

Pray: God of Shalom, your peace permeates the world when we are aware of you.  Grant us grace as we travel the path of life that unfolds before us.   Help us walk in peace as Jesus walked through his life here on earth.  Amen.

Engage in Lectio Divina, which means "sacred reading."  Allow yourself to be drawn deeply into God’s Presence as you read slowly and pray intently and listen carefully to these 7 verses which teach us about peace.  Read each verse and pause in silence between each one.  Which verse is drawing your attention?  Which verse can your heart sing with the one who originally spoke the words?

1.      Isaiah 55:12        Indeed you will go out with joy; you will be led along in peace; the mountains and hills will give a joyful shout before you, and all the trees in the field will clap their hands.. (NET)

2.      Psalm 85:10        Loyal love and faithfulness meet; deliverance and peace greet each other with a kiss.  (NET)

3.      Matthew 5:9        Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called the children of God. (NET)

4.      John 14:27           Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you; I do not give it to you as the world does. Do not let your hearts be distressed or lacking in courage.  (NET)

5.      John 16:33           I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. In the world you have trouble and suffering, but take courage—I have conquered the world. (NET)

     
6.     Romans 14:17-19   For the kingdom of God does not consist of food and drink, but righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. For the one who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and approved by people.  So then, let us pursue what makes for peace and for building up one another.  (NET)   

  
7.     Philippians 4:6-7   Do not be anxious about anything. Instead, in every situation, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, tell your requests to God. And the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. (NET)

 
Read all 7 verses again slowly with the same silent pauses.    Consider where God is calling your attention.   Choose just one verse with which to reflect.  Spend time with your verse and listen to the whispers of God through the words that have drawn you into the text ... Listen!

Take your verse, or a modified version of it that speaks of your life, with you as you walk on a Labyrinth or spend some time outside in nature.   Or find a place to simply sit quietly.  Let the Spirit of God guide you as you take time in the silence to “Reflect.” 

As you walk (or if you choose to simply sit in the quiet) turn your verse over in your mind.  Is there a word that is calling you from within the text or are you staying with a complete thought that arises from the verse? Let God speak into your heart as you listen.  As you walk, take time to "Release" anything that emerges that you need to let go of in order to move on in your prayers.

As you pause at the center of the Labyrinth or in the far places of your walk, take time to "Receive" and welcome God's word for you. Consider these questions or others that may arise in your time of pause:  Where is God speaking to me through my word or my verse?  How is my life touched by my word or my verse?

Before you begin your journey anew from the center, slowly read your verse again! Consider how you are being called to "Respond" to what you have heard from God about the peace that is growing larger within you.  As you walk or move out of the center along the same labyrinth path you took in, know that you are gaining strength for your continuing journey of life.  Who is God calling me to pray for or to reach out to through this verse as I manifest my growing sense of peace?  How is God calling me to change or grow deeper in my faith?

As you reach the end of the Labyrinth pathway, it is time to “Rest” in the silence of God's Presence.  Allow God to draw you deeper into the shining light of the Holy Presence and into the prayerful sense of God’s Spirit, ever holding you and loving you.  Let all the words fade away and stay in this lovely place as long as you can.  

Simply BE with the God who always hears your prayers.  

Before you move on ... pray the Prayer of St Francis to end your time of prayerful walking:

Lord, make me an instrument of thy peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
Where there is injury, pardon;
Where there is doubt, faith;
Where there is despair, hope;
Where there is darkness, light;
Where there is sadness, joy.

O divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
To be consoled as to console,
To be understood as to understand,
To be loved as to love;
For it is in giving that we receive;
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
It is in dying to self that we are born to eternal life.  Amen.

And listen to Make Me A Channel Of Your Peace sung by Susan Boyle set to amazing photos of nature on youtube.  Enjoy!  Amen!  Amen!  Amen! 

Lanterns in the Desert/Lenten Labyrinth: Worship the Lord your God, and Serve only God

 Your word is a lantern to my feet

 and a light to my path.

 Psalm 119:105

This week we are considering the 3rd temptation of Jesus in the desert as we walk the labyrinth.      Do you have easy access to a Labyrinth that you could walk?   If not, you can take this Link to a finger Labyrinth that you can download and print: PDF File/Labyrinth.  If you prefer, here is a link to an online virtual labyrinth. If you prefer, you can simply take a long contemplative walk.  If you didn't experience the text through Lectio Divina last week, you may want to take this link:  Lenten Lectio 3 before considering the text as you walk the Labyrinth.  If not, you may simply want to read the foundational text and let the words embrace you as you read.

Read Matthew 4:8-11 from The Message:  For the third test, the Devil took him to the peak of a huge mountain. He gestured expansively, pointing out all the earth’s kingdoms, how glorious they all were. Then he said, “They’re yours—lock, stock, and barrel. Just go down on your knees and worship me, and they’re yours.”  Jesus’ refusal was curt: “Beat it, Satan!” He backed his rebuke with a third quotation from Deuteronomy: 

“Worship the Lord your God, and only him.

Serve him with absolute single-heartedness.”

The Test was over. The Devil left. And in his place, angels! Angels came and took care of Jesus’ needs.

We are coming to the end of our Lenten journey and our "Lanterns in the Desert."  Very soon, we will turn more directly toward the cross as we walk with Jesus to the Mount of Olive as he prays in the Garden before his arrest ... and we find that an Angel once again appears to strengthen Jesus in his struggles.   Since next week is Holy week we'll listen as Jesus creates new "Lanterns in the Garden." 

Before we turn to the Garden, however, we take a final look at the 3rd test that Jesus encounters in his wilderness wanderings.  With Jesus, we all face the question of whether to put God and God’s will first in our lives. I think this is probably for me the most realistic test in my life.  Satan in my life is represented by many things in our culture that call me to worship them … Technology!!  Clothing!  Food!   Power!  Sports!  Movie Stars!  Family!   And there are SO many more!  

Take a few moments to think about your life and those things and people that seek and need you to worship them.  What are the things that swallow your time and energy, almost without you noticing?  What are the things that you put before God?  What causes you to fall short of serving God with “single-heartedness?”

Before moving into the text, settle into a place of loving openness within yourself with a simple Breath Prayer.  Use this one or allow one to emerge as you breathe in and breathe out for 5-10 minutes.

Breathing in ... God, my One and Only
Breathing out ... Guide me as I worship You
   
Pray: Holy God, your Word is my light and my lantern!  I am so tempted to worship things and people when I should be worshipping you.  Help me to worship you with my whole heart.  Amen.  

Jesus carries Jewish scripture in his heart as his Lantern in the Desert.    Allow yourself to be drawn deeply into God’s Presence as you read and pray and listen for the whispers of God through the text.  "Read" Deuteronomy 6:4-15 slowly.  The first part of this reading is Deuteronomy 6:4-9, which is called the Shema.  The Shema is the central prayer in the Jewish life and is often the first section of Scripture that a Jewish child learns.   The Shema is recited twice a day, in the morning and in the evening.  Jesus loosely quotes Deuteronomy 6:13, in his own words, to counter the devil’s temptations. 

Hear, O Israel: The Lord is our God, the Lord alone.  You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might. Keep these words that I am commanding you today in your heart. Recite them to your children and talk about them when you are at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you rise. Bind them as a sign on your hand, fix them as an emblem on your forehead, and write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.  When the Lord your God has brought you into the land that he swore to your ancestors, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give you—a land with fine, large cities that you did not build, houses filled with all sorts of goods that you did not fill, hewn cisterns that you did not hew, vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant—and when you have eaten your fill, take care that you do not forget the Lord, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. The Lord your God you shall fear; him you shall serve, and by his name alone you shall swear. Do not follow other gods, any of the gods of the peoples who are all around you, because the Lord your God, who is present with you, is a jealous God. The anger of the Lord your God would be kindled against you and he would destroy you from the face of the earth.

Read the passage again.  Is there a word or phrase that captures your attention as you read?  It may even be an image that will emerge for you. Perhaps this word or phrase or image will shine light into your life.   Let it illuminate your life as you walk and "Reflect" on what you are hearing. 

When you are on your way, turn your word or phrase or image over in your mind. Let God speak into your heart as you listen.  Take time to "Release" anything that emerges that you need to let go of in order to move on in your prayers.

Come to a time of pause … at the center of the Labyrinth or wherever you are.  Take time to "Receive" and welcome God's word for you. Consider these questions or others that may arise in your time of pause:  Where is God speaking into my desire to control my life and make things go my way ... through my word, phrase, or image?  How is my life touched by the word of God today?
 
As you walk or move out of the center along the same path you took that brought you to your pause, know that you are gaining strength for your continuing journey of life.  How is God inviting me to see myself differently?  How is God calling me to trust more deeply?  As you walk, take the time to "Respond" to God ... it doesn't have to be in words, it may be in a body prayer or in simple silence or ... however it seems right to you!

As you reach the end of your walk or the Labyrinth pathway, it is time to "Rest" in the silence of God's Presence.  Allow God to light your lantern in the desert with simplicity and healing grace.

Simply BE with the God who always hears your prayers.

Be aware that you may find a desire to express what you have received.  This is a wonderful time to journal.  Write about your experience, thoughts, feelings, and insights.   Some persons find that God’s voice is clarified through the writing process.

To end your time of Labyrinth Prayer, recite the Shema from the edge of the Labyrinth or simply recite it out loud to the birds or the trees.  They listen very well :)

The Shema

If art is a pathway to God for you, you may want to gaze upon the image below and engage in Visio Divina with it...  

Denying Satan, Carl Bloch, 1850, in public domain

Read the Image ... Allow your eyes to seek softly what you are attracted to in the image.  Simply receive the gift of seeing.  What image within the image is drawing you in ... Allow yourself a few moments simply to sit with this gift.
Receive the Image ... Take a deep breath and gaze with soft eyes and a receptive spirit.  After receiving, close your eyes and reflect by allowing your imagination to form that image in your consciousness ... what are you receiving from God through the image?  How does this illuminate your life right now?
Respond to God ... Now take a deep breath and gaze with soft eyes and a grateful spirit.  How do you sense yourself desiring to respond to God through the image you have received?  What would you say to God about what you are hearing, seeing, feeling?  Allow yourself to pray with gratitude ...
Rest in God ... Now take a deep breath and rest ... notice how your body feels.  Is there something more here?  Then go back and repeat your "gazing" prayer.   If you feel that you have received all you need in this moment, simply rest in the silence and come to a place of shalom, peace, wholeness ...

To end your time of Visio Divina ... Join Jesus in lifting up his Lantern in the Desert:

“Worship the Lord your God, and only God.

Serve God with absolute single-heartedness.”