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). Yesterday we crucified Christ. Today we wait. Imagine what was like to be Mary, John, Mary Magdalen, or one of the other apostles on the day after Christ’s crucifixion. On Thursday, their beloved friend was arrested. On Friday, He was tortured, carried His cross up a mountain, and was utterly humiliated. Yesterday they saw their friend killed in the most grotesque way possible at the time. They believed He was the Son of God, that He was God - and now He’s dead. They buried Him in the tomb, and then they hid in case they were next. Are they despairing? Do they trust that what He taught them is true? Are they afraid that they are next? When we look at Good Friday we don’t despair because we know what happens next. We know the rest of the story. We know that Christ has won the victory. But do we truly live that way? When things don’t go my way, when a friend betrays me, when I mess up, when a loved one is diagnosed with cancer, when someone dies, when life gets hard - do I remember that Christ has won the battle. The victory is His! More often than not, I have a tendency to forget this in the middle of the hard times. I forget that although I’m struggling through this battle, the victory is His. He took my old self up onto the cross with Him, and rose from the dead with my new self. My old self went into the tomb with Him on Good Friday. I am no longer bound by my slavery to sin, as Paul writes in Romans. And because of this, we will rise to new life with Him tomorrow on Easter. We rise to a new life in Christ with Him. We put away our old self yesterday and take on a new self in Christ as He rises on Easter. Are you ready to rise to new life tomorrow? Have you left behind all of your sin to take on your new self in the Resurrection? The Victory has been won! 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. Do you live like you know Christ is victorious in the end? How so? Why do we sometimes struggle to trust God when we already know the end of the story? How can you live in His Victory this Easter? 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. "Viva Cristo Rey." "Come Holy Spirit." "The Victory is Yours, Lord." 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? Spend these last few hours meditating and reflecting in the tombs of your heart. Dive deep into these last few hours so that you can be prepared for the immense joy to come tonight at the Easter Vigil! And if at all possible, go to the Easter Vigil tonight! 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 Katie Herzing, a former youth minister turned parish evanglization consultant living in North Carolina.
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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