Dec 13, 2020

290 Proclaim The Year of the Lord, A Guided Christian Meditation on Isaiah 61:1-4 with the Recenter With Christ app

I'm Chaplain Jared and I work as a hospice chaplain and an ICU chaplain, my purpose in making this podcast is to help you find more peace in your life and to be more open for your heart to be changed by the Spirit of God. By using centuries old form of Christian Meditation named Lectio Divina:

Outline: Relaxation, Reading, Meditation, Prayer, Contemplation and Visualization.

Get into a place where you can sit comfortably and uninterrupted for about 20 minutes.You should hopefully not be driving or anything tensing or unrelaxing. If you feel comfortable to do so, I invite you to close your eyes.

Guided Relaxation / Guided Meditation:

Breathe and direct your thoughts to contacting God. Let your stomach be a balloon inflate, deflate.

Bible verses for Meditation:

Isaiah 61:1-4
ESV
1 The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me,
because the Lord has anointed me
to bring good news to the poor;
he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim liberty to the captives,
and the opening of the prison to those who are bound;
2 to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor,
and the day of vengeance of our God;
to comfort all who mourn;
3 to grant to those who mourn in Zion—
to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes,
the oil of gladness instead of mourning,
the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit;
that they may be called oaks of righteousness,
the planting of the Lord, that he may be glorified.
4 They shall build up the ancient ruins;
they shall raise up the former devastations;
they shall repair the ruined cities,
the devastations of many generations.

NABRE
1 The spirit of the Lord God is upon me,
because the Lord has anointed me;
he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed,
to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim liberty to the captives,
and release to the prisoners;
2 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor,
and the day of vengeance of our God;
to comfort all who mourn;
3 to provide for those who mourn in Zion—
to give them a garland instead of ashes,
the oil of gladness instead of mourning,
the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit.
They will be called oaks of righteousness,
the planting of the Lord, to display his glory.
4 They shall build up the ancient ruins,
they shall raise up the former devastations;
they shall repair the ruined cities,
the devastations of many generations.

Meditation on Scripture:

This scripture is important. It is the one selected by Jesus to be read in the synagogue. When he finished reading it he told the people that the scripture had been fulfilled in their ears that day. It is comforting to see Jesus declare so clearly his mission and the fulfillment of prophecy. The coming of Christ certainly represents the year of the Lord’s favor. He brings comfort and cheer. Garland instead of ashes. For this we feel joy. For this we shall rejoice.

Despite whatever hard things occurred in Zion, whatever mourning and sadness, Jesus proclaimed that God would help clear that. There will be building instead of destruction. Repair instead of ruin. If we feel our lives are not what they should. If we feel there has been devastation, this is nothing beyond the power of Jesus. Not because he always fixes the situation right away, but because he gives us what we need to get through it.

Those who followed Jesus may have thought that this was not fulfillment of prophecy because the Temple was destroyed roughly 40 years later. They would not have seen the deliverance from Rome as they wanted, they may not have recognized the far more important victory. The victory over sin and death. May we not judge the success of God incorrectly.

Meditation of Prayer:

Pray as directed by the Spirit.

Dedicate these moments to the patient waiting, when you feel ready ask God for understanding you desire from Him.

Meditation of God and His Glory / Hesychasm:

I invite you to sit in silence feeling being patient for your own faults and trials.

Summarize what insights you have gained during this meditation and meditate and visualize positive change in your life:
This is a listener funded podcast at patreon.com/christianmeditationpodcast

Updates:

Final Question: What can you do to help keep the waters clean for others?

Final Thought: The analogy is not complete. In other words there is nothing that you or I can do to truly muddy Jesus. He has already risen above our sin and carelessness through his Atonement. The metaphor I am applying is that there are things that make it hard for others to follow God and partake of the life giving water. We should be willing to take a look in the mirror and stop those things.

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