05_V Is for Verbalize - Premium Content
Depending on where we are in the stages of prayer, we will “verbalize” differently, according to St. John of the Cross. In the purgative and illuminative stages, we have a lot to say to God, and He reciprocates. Verbal meditation becomes increasingly more frequent, focused, balanced, and peaceful. But in the desolation of the night of the soul, where God is preparing one to receive Him as He is – without images or words – verbalization comes to an abrupt and shocking halt. Indeed words are unnecessary, now, and can even prohibit the union with Him that God wants to give us.
Study Audio
LOVE the Word™ is a Bible study method based on Mary’s own practice: lectio without the Latin. This week’s LOVE the Word™ exercise is according to an Ignatian* personality approach from chapter seven of my newest book with Deacon Harold Burke-Sivers: Ignite, Read the Bible Like Never Before. See details below.
Listen (Receive the Word)
Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down his disciples came to him. And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
“Blessed are you when men revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.
“Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so men persecuted the prophets who were before you” (Matt 5:1-10).
Observe (Connect the passage to recent events.)
I wonder how it felt, sitting on the springtime meadow grass dotted with lilies in the quiet of early morning, catching the occasional whiff of what strains the fishermen’s nets as they are brought up from the shores of the lake in the distance. What was it like as the human race heard such radical things for the first time?
How did it feel to be part of that crowd? Did the grass sing? Did the earth pound with the new truths, the new law inaugurated with every word? No longer a matter of mere outward behavior, Jesus revealed that holiness includes something deeper, something higher, something fuller. What was Jesus emphasizing?
If God is not schizophrenic, but utterly consistent, why does Jesus come to us so differently from Moses? What does the springtime, pastoral Galilean setting communicate? What emotions play across Jesus’ face as He eases His overflowing heart in the company of those wholly devoted to Him? Are you amazed at every word, the cadence of each syllable? Why or why not?
Re-read the passage from the Sermon on the Mount, above. As you read, think: Do I believe Him?
What should you do now?
Verbalize (Pray about your thoughts and emotions).
Dear Jesus, what balm your words are to my soul, how strange and surprising their tenor. I see that you have suited yourself to the comprehension of earnest hearers; the way you repeat one thought over and over, laying it before me in a new form each time so I can appreciate nuance and subtlety. I sense how you long to be known and loved through the gentleness of your teachings. And yet how difficult they are!
You seem never too tired to prolong your instruction while my soul strains for your help to understand. Reflected in your words, as in a clear and spotless mirror, I see how backward I live from you. I see my prejudice, my preconceptions, my selfishness. That you seek to overthrow them all undoes me, and I am afraid of all you ask, even as the hope of it draws me to you. I pray for the grace and courage to live out this new law of love in all my duties today, especially the one you are pointing out to me here…
Entrust (May it be done to me according to your word!)
Maybe you want to offer thanksgiving for the gentleness with which your Savior approaches you.
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*LOVE the Word™ exercises vary weekly according to the four personalities, or “prayer forms,” explored in Prayer and Temperament, by Chester Michael and Marie Norrisey: Ignatian, Augustinian, Franciscan, and Thomistic. These prayer forms correspond to the Myers-Briggs personality types.
Episode Resources
This week’s LOVE the Word™ exercise is from chapter six of my newest book with Deacon Harold Burke-Sivers: Ignite, Read the Bible Like Never Before, available for pre-order with a 30% discount using code SPARK here.
Ignite will be out August 17. Get a preview of the introduction and first chapter here.
Read the Transcript
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