"Taste the Wine; Drink the Milk"

¹“Ho! Every one who thirsts, come to the waters;
     And you who have no money come, buy and eat
     Come, buy wine and milk
     Without money and without cost.
²“Why do you spend money for what is not bread,
     And your wages for what does not satisfy?
     Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good,
     And delight yourself in abundance.
³“Incline your ear and come to Me
     Listen, that you may live;
     And I will make an everlasting covenant with you,
     According to the faithful mercies shown to David.

⁶Seek the LORD while He may be found;
     Call upon Him while He is near.
¹⁰“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven,
     And do not return there without watering the earth
     And making it bear and sprout,
     And furnishing seed to the sower and bread to the eater;
¹¹So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth;
     It will not return to Me empty,
     Without accomplishing what I desire,
     And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.
¹²“For you will go out with joy
     And be led forth with peace;
     The mountains and the hills will break forth into shouts of joy before you,
     And all the trees of the field will clap their hands.

      This is our fourth week of the series Praying the Bible. Today we move from the Psalms to another form of scripture, praying a prophetic text. Next week we will consider the idea of praying a story. Both this week and next we look at a different way of praying the Bible, because we are looking at scripture which was not originally written to be prayed. These are not prayer texts, and so in praying them there is a need for a different sort of approach. It is pretty easy to pray a psalm, just pick it up, read it, and pray it.

      With other genres of scripture there are other ways of approaching prayer. Today I will focus on lectio divina. Many of you already know this, and you do it. Some of you know this and will rediscover it. For others, this will be the first time you have heard of it. It is a very powerful and effective way of praying the scripture, and I invite you to it.

      Lectio divina is a Latin term which means simply, divine reading. Lectio is a centuries-old Christian tradition, but it fell into disuse sometime around the Middle Ages. It was thought that only the elite few could receive the benefit of contemplation that was part of lectio. Religious communities continued to practice it, and it has been a mainstay for such groups as the Benedictines, Trappists, and Cistercian religious communities.

      Even today, when Christians think of meditation or contemplation, many think it is something that is done only in Eastern religions, or by monastic Christians. This is a misconception. For the majority of Christian history, lectio and contemplation was a daily Christian practice.

      We are rediscovering lectio for our times. It is a treasure and an avenue to grace which anyone can receive. There has been resurgence in recent years for the meditation and contemplation which accompany lectio.

      The wonderful thing about lectio, indeed about praying the Bible, is that it is a gift we receive, not something we do. We make ourselves open to God's Spirit by allowing room and time for this in our busy lives. Praying the Bible, meditating on God's word, and being open to contemplation (resting in God), is a powerful antidote to the gods of our day. Self-orientation, individualism, and consumerism fall away when we allow such room for God.

      In our study of John's Gospel this week we spent some time discussing John 3:30. In it John the Baptizer is speaking of Jesus, and he says, "He must increase, and I must decrease." In order for God to fill us, there needs to be less "us" and more God. This verse from John is a wonderful way to begin a time of prayer and meditation.

      An ancient fable tells of a pilgrim who seeks the Beloved. He knocks at God's door and hears: "Who is there?" He replies, "It is I." From inside the locked door comes the response: "There is no room in here for both of us." Despondent, he goes away into the forest and for long months meditates on the words he has heard. Then he returns and knocks again at the door. In response to the same question, "Who is there?" he then replies, "It is You, Lord!"---and the door opens to receive him.¹

      More of thee, Lord, and less of me.

      I will speak in more detail about lectio next week. For today, I mention a few things. First, create a space in your life to receive God's Word to you. Find a quiet time and place where you are not distracted, where you are doing nothing else. No multitasking allowed. Turn off your phone. Carve out 15 minutes. Assume a quiet and erect posture and ask God to open your heart and mind to listen to what God has to say. When you are calm and focused, open your Bible and read a passage slowly and deliberately. (We will talk about how to choose passages next week). Imagine that God is speaking directly to you, insert your name as you read. Allow yourself to be addressed by God. Imagine that you are speaking directly to God. Your goal is not to 'get through' a passage but to allow it to speak to you. You may end up meditating on only one phrase. That's fine.

      Now let's look at today's passage with some of these things in mind.

¹“Ho! Every one who thirsts, come to the waters;
     And you who have no money come, buy and eat
     Come, buy wine and milk
     Without money and without cost.
²“Why do you spend money for what is not bread,
     And your wages for what does not satisfy?
     Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good,
     And delight yourself in abundance.

      There is something for everyone to drink deeply of here. There is water, of course, abundant and fresh and thirst quenching. There is wine, too, if you happen to like this, and milk, also, if that is more to your taste.

      God offers us something completely different than almost everything else we encounter in this life. Life giving sustenance, grace overflowing, food without cost. This morning I share with you some of my own meditations on this text, in the spirit of lectio divina.

Come, all you who are thirsty.

      I am empty Lord. Parched, dry. I act like it's all up me. I forget how much you offer me, freely and undeservedly. I forget how you long to fill my life with good things.

Come, you who have no money.

      Jesus, you don't care one whit about money, except aybe as it's used to help people.

      Are you saying the ones with no money are the ones invited?

      Don't labor on that which does not satisfy.

      Why spend time doing things that are not important?

      Do not feel guilty about getting help.

      Don't do it if it's not important. You spend so much time doing things that don't really matter.

Eat what is good.

      I will give you what is good for you.

      Thank you, Lord, for the healing that goes on in my body everyday: small hurts, sensitivities, a hangnail here, a stubbed toe there. Thank you God, for all the many ways you take care of me every day.

Listen to me----and I will feed your spirit.

Hear me----that your soul may live.

   ⁶Seek the LORD while He may be found;
        Call upon Him while He is near.

Is there a time, Lord, when you are not near? Is there a time, Lord, when you are not?

Bidden or not bidden, You, God, are present. You are here whether or not I ask you to be here; you surround me at all times. It is I who fail to notice you, who fail to listen for you or even to acknowledge you.

   ¹⁰“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven,
        And do not return there without watering the earth
        And making it bear and sprout,
        And furnishing seed to the sower and bread to the eater;
   ¹¹So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth;
        It will not return to Me empty,
        Without accomplishing what I desire,
        And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.

      My word will not return to me empty. I will accomplish what I desire to achieve the purpose for which I sent it.

      I will make you and your work fruitful. I will increase your congregation. I will inspire the people. I will bless you all so richly that you may go out to be a blessing. I is I who do these things. It is up to you to be open to receive them, to be open to how I am prompting you, to share the good you already know with people who need me just as much as you need me. People who are as thirsty and hungry as you are. . .

      God invites us to drink deeply of His word. To taste the wine; to drink the milk, to be full and satisfied and to go out with joy in the knowledge of his nearness.

      All we have to do is make room for God, listen, and accept the invitation.