Praying the Scriptures

We hear this term mentioned frequently, but to actually engage in this practice takes time and discipline.  We begin first with a short introduction to this topic from Michael at In-Formatio and then continue with a link to something exceptionally detailed for those of you who want to go deep on this.

Seventeenth-century French mystic Madame Guyon said, “Praying scripture is not judged by how much you read but by the way in which you read. If you read quickly, it will benefit you little. You will be like a bee that merely skims the surface of a flower. Instead, in this new way of reading with prayer, you must become as the bee that penetrates into the depths of the flower. You plunge deeply within to remove its deepest nectar.” (From Common Prayer)

John 15:9-17 (The Gospel for Sunday, May 13)

Jesus said to his disciples, “As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete.

“This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. I do not call you servants any longer, because the servant does not know what the master is doing; but I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father. You did not choose me but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask him in my name. I am giving you these commands so that you may love one another.”

With that as a starting point, I want to direct you to this article at the blog The Radical Life  by Andy Robinson of King’s Church, Horsham (UK) where you’ll read about:

• Praying Chapters
• Praying Chunks
• Praying Chippings
  

with example scriptures that may be used for each.

Apology: Yesterday’s piece here was posted at 5 AM instead of 5 PM EST.  For those of you who come each day, be sure you didn’t miss the testimony article which appeared the day before.