They asked each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?”
- Luke 24:32
 
Scripture-induced heartburn … and it’s a good thing.
 
As we close out our week reflecting on the question “What about the Bible?” we’d be remiss if we didn’t give you a little help taking a step toward a deeper reading of scripture. All too often we read the Bible only for intellectual knowledge or for moral guidance (and the Bible is a great source for both!), but there’s another layer of engagement we want to encourage you to explore today.
 
In this week’s text, Jesus met a pair of his disciples who were in the depths of discouragement and dashed hopes. Their emotional state had spiritual consequences.
 
God created each of us with deep currents of emotions that move and drive us. Intuitions. Conscience. Feelings. All of these swirl around in our hearts as we follow Jesus out into the world. Even the most rational and intellectual among us sway under the weight of our hearts.
 
Today we want to invite you to participate in an exercise called lectio divina. This is an ancient way of reading God’s word and an excellent tool for giving your heart space to leap and bound through the biblical text.
 
We’re going to invite you to read a few verses from Psalm 19 and follow the following steps:

• Read – What word or phrase from the text does God want me to attend to today?
• Meditate – Why might God be drawing my attention to that word or phrase?
• Pray – What does my heart want to say back to God today?
• Respond – How is God inviting me to respond to what I’ve read?

 
Give it a try with the passage below!
 
Psalm 19:7-10
⁷ The law of the Lord is perfect,
    refreshing the soul.
The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy,
    making wise the simple.
⁸ The precepts of the Lord are right,
    giving joy to the heart.
The commands of the Lord are radiant,
    giving light to the eyes.
⁹ The fear of the Lord is pure,
    enduring forever.
The decrees of the Lord are firm,
    and all of them are righteous.
¹⁰ They are more precious than gold,
    than much pure gold;
they are sweeter than honey,
    than honey from the honeycomb.