Introductory prayer
I calm down and I feel the presence of God in me. I ask for the grace of the Holy Spirit to open the word of God, I accept it and allow it to fulfill my mission in me, in order to become more and more what I am in Holy Trinity. Then I ask God for this prayer, in my own words, or with those that are here…
Lord, my Shepherd, you are always close to people, you know them, you really know them – and you love them as they are. You are sympathetic to them, but you do not take their lives for granted – you rather support them to take steps with their free will.< Lord, inspire me to cultivate the qualities of a shepherd and thus walk the path you call me, and at the same time follow you, who are my Shepherd.
2. Reading – Listening: I am the Good Shepherd, I know my sheep, I lay down my life for my sheep – bible verse – John 10 11 16 meaning
11 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12 The hired hand is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. 13 The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.
14 “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me— 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep. 16 I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd.
See also:
- 14 Stations of the Cross explanation with pictures
- The Crucifixion of Jesus – Good Friday Message and Meaning
3. Thoughts on the Gospel – I am the Good Shepherd, I know my sheep, I lay down my life for my sheep – bible verse – John 10 11 16 meaning
Jesus as a good shepherd also inspired the apostle Paul, which can be seen in what he wrote in 1 Thess. Paul writes, “3 For the appeal we make does not spring from error or impure motives, nor are we trying to trick you. 4 On the contrary, we speak as those approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel. We are not trying to please people but God, who tests our hearts.”(1 Thess 2: 2,3-4). Many preachers of that time spread their ideas mainly by skillful speaking – whether they were truthful or not, did not matter! In this way, they conquered and connected people to themselves, while earning fame and money. Rhetoric has always been an indispensable means of persuading the listeners. It was born as art to serving wisdom, but it corrupted and replaced wisdom. It has become a smoke that largely dominates personal and social life, ethics, politics, work, and commerce.
Paul and later Cyril and Methodius were different from these preachers. They had no insidious intentions when they preached. At first, they were the listeners of the word of God themselves, only then did they feel that God considered them worthy to trust them with the gospel. They did not want to please people, but God. Pleasing is the source of all action, but pleasing oneself or people means severe slavery. But he who pleases God is free from himself and others and can serve. God himself becomes his pleasure: he feels and acts like him. Paul and the true apostles never spoke in such a way as to flatter. Flattery is masked envy, the desire to win someone over to oneself.
When Paul described what an apostle should not be, he says what he is like, 7 Instead, we were like young children among you. Just as a nursing mother cares for her children, 8 so we cared for you. Because we loved you so much, we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well.(1 Thess 2: 7-8).
The apostle’s authority is gentle, kind, and maternal; it does not burden, but protects, nurtures, nourishes. The true apostle is driven by generosity and compassion, that unconditional love that led Jesus to give his life for us as a good shepherd. The true voice of Jesus resonates in the deepest desires and hopes of the human heart – for love, justice, forgiveness, and mercy. Because of this, other sheep will also hear his voice. He speaks a language that everyone can understand – the language of the heart. He speaks the language of giving and faithful love to all. His voice was heard through the words and lives of Sts. Cyril and Methodius. And Jesus, the good shepherd, wants his voice to be heard through each of us, his disciples. Where goodness and love are present, the voice of Jesus Christ is heard.
See also:
4. Meditation – thinking
About everything I have read and what has touched me, I am thinking now. I let my thoughts also touch my heart. Think:
- I observe (with the ability of my imagination) a shepherd. What addresses me to him?
- The shepherd knows his sheep. When I think of the people around me, what do they need at this time?
- What quality does the Lord reveal to me so that I can develop it and thus live the vocation to the fullest?
5. Personal Prayer
In the next moments of silence, I talk about this with Jesus. I tell him what I think, what I feel, what I want. I ask him for the grace that I need for … (make your conversation with God).
Lord, my Shepherd, thank you for leading me on the path of love, on the path of the heart that perceives what is needed: when to offer, when to bring clarity, when to set a limit, when to embrace. Thank you for inviting me to develop into an independent person who accepts your call and follows you.
6. Contemplation – Quiet moment with God
Now I let silence be in me. I am simply present in God, as He is quietly present in me. Perhaps from this silence, I hear God’s speech, which invites me perhaps in thanksgiving and worship or to open myself and accept him in my path life and work, maybe He gives me the courage to continue searching for…
7. Action
When I walk into a personal relationship with God, he changes me, makes me more loving and encourages me to the concrete action, which is….. (write down your insights for concrete action).
8. Prayer at the end
Lord, my Shepherd, thank you for leading me on the path of love, on the path of the heart that perceives what is needed: when to offer, when to bring clarity, when to set a limit, when to embrace. Thank you for inviting me to develop into an independent person who accepts your call and follows you.
9. Review of my prayer meditation or reflection
This is my view on what was happening in me at the time, I spent praying. In my reflection, I can help myself with the following questions:
- How was I feeling when I started praying?
- What happened during the prayer?
- What feelings and thoughts could I detect in myself?
- How did I feel with the revelations, which I had during my prayer?
- What did I learn about myself, about God, about his attitude towards me and others and me to him and others?
- How did I finish my prayer?
- What did I receive for my everyday life?
- In the end, I can write the lessons, findings, and insights. I can write also, where I had problems, they may have great value in learning about my relationship and myself with God. They can also help to find a more appropriate way of prayer for me.
- Then I thank the Holy Trinity. If I pray with my family or in the community, friends, I can share with them what I felt in this prayer. With a prayer for one another, you can support yourself throughout the week.
Lectio Divina meditations are published and adapted with permission from the Jesuits home – ignacijevdom.si
Text from the Bible – New International Version (NIV)