Bible talk: Praying with Scriptures

(photo source)

in celebration of national bible week, i shall be sharing some of the lessons from my high 1 cle classes at xavier school last year, particularly about the sacred scriptures.
As we conclude our Bible talk series, we as Catholic Christians are challenged to do the following:

1. Read and interpret the Scriptures in the way the Church teaches us to do it.
The Bible is the written record of the memory of God’s people. As such, it must be read and understood in the context of time and space when it was written. To understand God’s message for us, it is important sometimes that we know the author’s intention at the time the message was written. But in reading the Bible, we must always make a constant effort to focus on its faith message.

2. Show reverence and respect in the way we handle it.
The Bible is not an ordinary book. It should be accorded the reverence and appreciation it deserves. It is a Holy Book, a book that can transform us and lead us to God.

3. Pray with it.
For the Bible to help us really understand God’s message in faith, we need to establish a certain pattern in reading the Scriptures. We do this in the spirit of prayer, since it is God who speaks to us. The following are some steps in doing this:

• Read the text. What does it tell? Paraphrase it in your mind
• React to the text. What is it telling you in particular? What words or verses or phrases in the text struck you?
• Talk to God about this word/phrase/verse that struck you. Tell Him about your difficulty if you are to live out His Word.
• Read the text again slowly. Go into quiet. Simply listen. Allow God to give you spiritual thoughts and insights about the text.
• Discern what God wants you to do based from His message in this particular text. And resolve to do something concrete about this.
• End with a simple formula prayer.

4. Live out its message.
To live by the Word of God is really the ultimate goal of our reading, praying and studying the Bible. The more we apply the message of the Bible in our daily lives, the more we can really understand and appreciate it. This will help us see the true meaning and value of our life in relation to God who loves us and who transforms us into His loving children.