Eugene Peterson’s book ‘Eat This Book’ (an allusion to Ezekiel 3) talks about the art of reading Scripture and of Biblical meditation, ‘chewing over’ God’s word like a dog with a bone. ‘Lectio divina’ (holy reading) takes a verse or two at most and invites us to reflect, pray and memorise these words to see what God is saying to us as we ponder and pray.
A dog gnawing on a bone, sucking every ounce of goodness from the marrow or a cow chewing the cud repeatedly are analogies used to describe the process. Just recently I’ve enjoyed sucking slices of lime after a cold drink of water and this reminded me of the process of Biblical meditation.
The Holy Spirit is in believers to reveal truth to us and to remind us of all Jesus has taught. Recently I have been meditating on the Great Commission (Matt 28:18-20. I keep coming back to these fundamental truths, pondering what it means to go, what it means to make disciples, the sacrament of baptism, the tri-une nature of God, the role of teaching, the need for obedience, the presence of God. I am learning and re-learning so much as I dwell daily in these verses.
In an age of hustle and bustle, meditation bucks the trend. It refuses to let us hurry on. It changes the pace. It gives us an anchor for the soul.