Step #1: Lectio / ReadClick the link below or open your Bible to the passage and read through the reading at least once, paying attention to what is happening in the text. Step #2: Meditatio / MeditateUse the following meditation to help you reflect more deeply on the Scripture (you may want to read the passage again). “When they sow the wind, they shall reap the whirlwind” - Hosea 8:7 Take a second to read the line above. I love the imagery God uses while speaking through the prophet Hosea. Picture yourself standing in a farm field on a blustery day. Instead of planting seeds in the ground, you take a handful, raises your arm toward the sky, and releases the seeds. The seeds get caught in a current of wind and are gone. A few minutes later you look up and see your seeds heading back your way—in the form of a twister! In the reading, and the entire book of Hosea, God is calling the people of Israel to repentance. He wants his ways to be the ways to his people. He’s not condemning Israel—he wants them to come back to him! I bet many of us have had times where we felt like we had we were on the same team with God or even that God was working through us. Maybe it was when we were volunteering at a Church event, serving others, or sharing Jesus with someone. I’ve had experiences like that, and it’s a great feeling. God and I are on the same page. He can use me as a vessel and we are ready to share his love. Other times I don’t feel as connected to God. I fail to recognize his presence and my main concern is making it through the day. In those times, it’s not God that’s changed—it’s me! I don’t make time in prayer a priority and busy myself with too many distractions. I fall out of line with God’s will. I sow in the wind. For me, that’s when life gets chaotic. Those seeds I sowed away from God come at me like a twister. So as you spend this time in prayer, I challenge you to talk to God honestly. Discuss what areas of life lack his presence. Talk about how you can work together. Step #3: Oratio / PrayThese questions are to be used to talk to God; have a conversation with the Lord about these questions and what is going on in your heart as you pray today. What are the things that you sow in your life and relationship with God? How do the things you sow in the wind and not the ground come back at you like a whirlwind? How are you and God on the same team right now? Step #4: Contemplatio / ContemplateIn this step, you listen. Stop talking, let God speak to your heart. You may repeat one of these short phrases to focus your mind on the Lord. "Help me sow good seeds." "Lord, show me how to be one with you." "Jesus, I trust in you." Step #5: Actio / ActIn light of today's reading and your time spent in prayer with the Lord, what concrete action or actions will you take to let this encounter with the Lord bear fruit in you today? Take time today to think about how you can get overwhelmed and let your relationship with God slip through the cracks. Make a plan to counteract the ways that you struggle so that the next time you can continue being on the Lord's team! Smartphone Lock ScreenThe following image is here for you to save and use as a background or lock screen on your smartphone or device to help you carry today's Lectio Divina with you the rest of the day.  "Today's Prayer was prepared by Liam Brady, an accountant in Chicago.
If you have anything you'd like our team to pray for, please go to the page of our website called ""Prayers"" and let us know how we can pray for you today. " Comments are closed.
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