Unforced Rhythms of Grace, Pt. 2: Scripture
Leader: Tonight’s Practice will include an invitation for everyone in your Community to reflect and respond by writing a few things down. People are welcome to use their phones to jot down notes, but having devices out might be a distraction, so consider having some pens and paper available.
Take Communion
Leader: Begin your time together by taking communion together, whether as a full meal or some version of the bread and the cup before or after your meal. If you don’t already have a Communion liturgy, have someone read from the gospel of Matthew 11v28-30
Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,
for I am gentle and humble in heart,
and you will find rest for your souls.
For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.
Review the Last Practice
Leader: As you and your Community begin to review last week’s Practice, it may be helpful to remind everyone that this is not a place to be hyper critical or judgemental of what was necessarily accomplished. This is to simply notice how it went, what felt hard, and be encouraged hearing from one another.
Before we jump into tonight’s Practice, let’s collectively reflect and talk about how this previous week went practicing the Daily Prayer Rhythm.
Which part of the Daily Prayer Rhythm came the most natural to you? (the Lord’s Prayer in the Morning, praying for the lost at Midday, or gratitude in the Evening)
Where did you sense God’s voice, his presence, and action through it?
What was hard about it? What might you want to do differently in the future?
Read This Overview Aloud Together
Since our collective aim is to be with Jesus, become like Jesus, and do what Jesus did, it is key to not only remember the life of Jesus but to take on the lifestyle of Jesus. To Jesus, the Scriptures were a tool, an instrument that shaped how he viewed and interacted with God and the world. And even more than that, Jesus is the singular person in all of biblical history to claim that the Scriptures were not only forming him, they were about him. The story of the Bible culminates in the person of Jesus. The Scriptures bring to life freedom, healing, redemption, justice, mercy, and transforming love.
Before bookstores or phone apps, the people of God would gather together in a room with a single copy or parts of the Scriptures, and listen as large sections of it would be read out loud. This practice of gathering together for the purpose of encountering God in the Scriptures was part of their weekly lives. Anything that we practice regularly shapes and forms the way we view ourselves, others, and God. It’s been said that whatever we behold, we often become. So, as followers of Jesus we sit under the Scriptures’ authority and allow it to re-form our hearts and worldviews. Through the Practice of Scripture, Jesus’ reality becomes our reality—ultimately shaping how we live.
Do This Practice Tonight
Leader: If you want to follow along in your BREAD book, we’ll be using the prompts on page 6. It could be helpful to ask someone else in your Community to read Psalm 126, so that you and/or your Co-Leader can guide everyone through the prompts below.
As we build a habit of reading the Scriptures, we learn to find ourselves in God’s story. The Scriptures begin to help us see the world the way God does and be formed into his image. There are many ways to engage Scripture—like reading, studying, memorizing, and praying it—but tonight we are going to use the process of BREAD to encounter the Spirit through Psalm 126, from Sunday’s scheduled reading.
BREAD is a modern take on lectio divina, which is a time-tested way of meeting with God in the pages of Scripture. So, as we do this, simply notice where you sense the Spirit speaking to you through the text. Pay attention to how your heart is postured, doing your best to open yourself to God’s voice and let the words you hear challenge, shape, and bless you. We will follow these five prompts to guide our time: Be Still, Read, Encounter, Apply, and Devote.
Leader: Be sure not to rush each prompt. So pay attention to how people are doing in the room, and pause for 1-2 minutes between each.
Be still: To begin, let’s put away our devices or any distractions and get into a comfortable but alert position. Let’s take a few moments to breathe in and out deeply, centering ourselves before God.
Read: Now, let’s read Psalm 126. After a minute or two, we will reread the passage again slowly. As we read, take notice of what stands out and perhaps even write it down.
Encounter: Now, we’re going to meditate on what God highlighted to each of us by reflecting silently on the question: What might God be saying to me?
Apply: Next, we are going to name and write down what God might be inviting us into. How might we practically engage this invitation tonight, tomorrow, and in the week to come?
Devote: Finally, we’ll take a moment to write or silently pray a prayer, committing ourselves to what God has been revealing to us and how we want to be transformed by him and his truth. Through this, we get to surrender and entrust our deepest formation to the Spirit of God.
Leader: Be sure to close in a prayer of gratitude for how God met us before moving on.
Read The Practice for the Week Ahead
This week, we want to continue this Practice by setting aside intentional time to read the Scriptures daily. Keep in mind, the Practice of reading Scripture is aimed more at growing a relationship with God than gathering information about God. If you don’t have a regular Practice of reading the Bible, consider picking up a copy of BREAD in the Bridgetown Bookstore. (And there’s a BREAD for Kids version available for Families!) If you want to read BREAD’s readings for this week (January 21 – 27, 2024), they are:
Sunday: Psalm 126
Monday: John 3v1-8
Tuesday: Galatians 3v23-4v7
Wednesday: Ephesians 4v17-32
Thursday: 2 Corinthians 5v16-21
Friday: Isaiah 43v1-13
Saturday: Revelation 21v1-7
If you already have a daily rhythm of reading Scripture, consider adding something like memorization to your Scripture Practice. Simply put, memorization is the process of continually remembering the words, truths, and images God uses to shape us. Memorization can provide us with a whole new pathway of learning, which can be accessed anywhere and anytime.
The next time we meet, we’ll take time to hear about how this Practice of daily reading the Scripture went for each of us.
End in Prayer
Leader: Close your time together in prayer, asking God to continue teaching your Community that his yoke is easy and his burden is light through the Practice of Scripture.