Lectio Divina This method of prayer goes back to the early monastic tradition. Many of the monks did not have their own bible, and not everyone knew how to read. So the monks gathered in the chapel to hear a member of the community reading from the scriptures. In this exercise they were taught and encouraged to listen with their hearts because it was the Word of God that they were hearing.
When a person wants to use Lectio Divina as a prayer form today, the method is very simple. When one is a beginner, it is better to choose a passage from one of the Gospels or epistles, usually ten or fifteen verses. Some people who regularly engage in this method of prayer choose the epistle or the Gospel for the Mass of the day as suggested by the Catholic Church.
LECTIO (Reading) Read the passage slowly. You may want to read the passage out loud. Listen deeply. Do certain words, phrases, or images capture your attention?Are you attracted or do you experience some resistance? What lines is God “highlighting” for you? With your imagination enter into the passage. How do you feel? What is stirred up in you? Feel the Word deeply.
MEDITATIO (Meditation) Meditate on them, in the sense of thinking about them, reflecting, turning them over and over in your mind and heart. What does it mean? Think about the feelings the passage stirred in you. What connections do you see with your life? Fill your mind with the Word. The things you've learned from a commentary might help in this stage, but meditatio is not just a matter of intellect, it is mind and heart and intuition.
ORATIO (Prayer) Let the Scriptures draw you into prayer. Respond to God by sharing your thoughts and feelings. Talk to God about what has surfaced in your reading and meditation. Open your heart to God, pouring out in prayer whatever you find there. Pray yourself empty.
CONTEMPLATIO (Contemplation) Simply be present. Just rest in the love of God that you have experienced in these Scriptures. (Sometimes we just aren't able to do this, and that's OK.) After resting in God for as long as you are able, take a deep breath and pray the Our Father, Sign of the Cross, or Glory Be to bring your time of lectio to a close.