Meeting 2. - "Speak to Me, Lord"
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.. tags:: content|word-of-god|Word of God, content|prayer|Prayer, content|community|Community, method|text-work|Text work, method|art-activity|Art activity, type|biblical|Biblical

Meeting goals
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- sharing with others reflections from the Tent of Meeting prayer -- enriching others through one's testimony;
- creating posters that will hang in the room during the evening prayer so that we are "surrounded by prayer";
- showing and emphasizing the difference between reading the Word of God only in terms of interpreting the text and the Tent of Meeting, which is a face-to-face conversation with God;
- drawing from the given passage of the Word of God conclusions to be applied in one's own life.

Introduction for the animator
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Time of the meeting: **40 min**

**Needed materials: poster with the passage assigned to the group, markers, mounting supplies**

This meeting is entirely devoted to reflecting on the passage of the Word of God with which the group prayed during the Tent of Meeting (directly before this group meeting). Each group received a different passage, and so the challenge was to adapt this outline to the needs of each of them, especially when formulating sharing questions that could be equally helpful for every text.

There are many questions in this outline, but we assumed that only a few of them would actually be used during the meeting. They are meant to make sharing easier and to "move it forward" if difficulties arise. **IMPORTANT: Not all of the questions fit all texts, so please read through them beforehand and adapt them to the passage your group received.**

We emphasize that this outline is meant only as a help and a guide for fruitfully living through this meeting. At the same time, the use of posters is important for the further course of the retreat, so regardless of how the sharing unfolds, please make sure that the result is a "written-on" text of the Word of God that can later hang in the conference room for the rest of the retreat, and especially during the evening prayer. It is worth telling the participants what will later happen with the fruit of their work, making sure that it is aesthetic and readable, and explaining that markings and notes in the text are not contrary to reverence for the Word of God.

Course of the meeting
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Let us once again read the whole passage aloud. Let us listen to its words and recall our conversation with God during the Tent of Meeting. Let us consider what brought us joy, what made us think, what we discovered, and what we want to share with the group.

The method of this meeting is based on "Sharing the Gospel" -- participants speak their reflections on the text, talk about their experiences, and share what they lived through in the Tent of Meeting. This time, however, we do not stop at conversation alone, but want to transfer our experience onto paper. We want to enrich not only the small group by our testimony, but the entire retreat community, and during the evening prayer literally "surround ourselves with prayer."

Rules for the sharing meeting
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- At the beginning of a contribution, we **refer to the verse** from the passage we are considering.
- A contribution **may take the form of a prayer** addressed to God; it can end with the words "Thank you, Lord," "I am sorry, Lord," "Please, Lord," or "I praise you, Lord."
- Sharing can also take the form of **personal reflections or testimony**. One can mention what other passage from the Bible the text calls to mind. One can refer to one's own life story.
- Contributions are formulated in the **first person singular**. We should not moralize, instruct, generalize, or complain about how bad the world is.
- Giving lectures about the Bible is good and beautiful, but sharing the Word is far more fascinating.
- We **listen carefully** to what others say. During that time, we do not think about what we ourselves will say or write on the poster in a moment.
- Every participant in the meeting should have a chance to speak, but if someone does not want to, they may decide to resign from that opportunity -- it is good for them to say so clearly.
- We **do not comment on** the statements and notes of others. We may refer to them, but we do not evaluate them.
- The goal is mutual enrichment! We want to help the other members of the group, **strengthen one another through testimony**, and testimony makes no sense when it is directed to no one or only to oneself.

The participants have just come from the Tent of Meeting prayer, so we encourage them to share what they discovered there. At the same time, however, we stress that the Tent of Meeting is a very personal prayer, a conversation between two persons, so we do not press if someone does not want to share every detail.

Besides personal reflections, observations and comments about the text itself will certainly appear as well (for example: historical context, references to other passages, remarks about form). These are valuable and worth writing down, but our main concern is sharing life and spiritual experience, so it is worth steering contributions in that direction.

Sample questions (CHOOSE FROM)
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- Which words in this text are the most important for you? [each person circles them] Why? [each person draws an arrow from their circle and writes the justification in the margin of the text]
- What puzzles you in this passage? What is not entirely clear? Mark it in an appropriate way (with an assigned color? a fitting symbol?) and add why.
- What is a particular discovery for you? Mark it in an appropriate way (with an assigned color? a fitting symbol?) and add what you discovered.
- What do you read here as a call to action directed personally to you? Mark it in an appropriate way (with an assigned color? a fitting symbol?) and add what you felt called to.
- What in this passage do you especially receive as a prayer spoken by you to God?
- The theme of the retreat is four attitudes of prayer (and of life): thanksgiving, petition, asking forgiveness, and praise. Which of these do you notice in this passage?
- At what moments in life do you identify with the person speaking / depicted in the text? Are you living through something similar now, or did you live through it in the past?
- What was the meaning of the words of Scripture for the people of that time? What do these words mean today? To what action do they call us now?
- What particular image do the words you have heard place before your eyes?
- In what way are the petitions voiced in the text being fulfilled / have been fulfilled in our life / in the world?

Writing reflections on the posters
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- We suggest that the animator begin the writing, show what the task consists in, and "set the tone."
- We do not recommend appointing a single "scribe"; it is better if everyone writes down their own reflections.
- Please do not write notes between the lines, because this will reduce the readability of the text, especially since the posters will be hanging on the walls. It is better to write comments in the margins.
- Even a passage that at first glance seems to concern only one of the above prayer attitudes may be related to life and marked in the context of another. For example, the verse *"Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one"* (Jn 17:11) -- through this passage one can ask God for protection, thank him for giving us his Name and uniting us in it, ask forgiveness for the lack of unity in the family / community, and praise him for what he gives us. Each person can relate it differently to themselves. What matters is that it be personal, not according to an "answer key."
- If more people want to add their comments to the same verse, it is best to "share" the space, draw a few arrows, or mark the notes with an appropriate symbol in the margin. Each of us has a right to our own discovery and our own way of seeing the Word of God addressed to us, and everyone should be given the chance to share it.
- **Symbols, pictograms, small sketches** can unlock creativity; the animator may offer examples.
- **A simple color code** (e.g. petition, asking forgiveness, thanksgiving, praise) can help mark the text at a glance.

Summary and application
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The purpose of meditating on the Word of God is that it may work within us and lead to change in our life. To what does this Word call me?

You can guide the group toward applications connected with the four attitudes of prayer / life, especially if we talked about them during the meeting.

Let us remember that the application should be simple, concrete, and verifiable.

| NO: *I will pray more.*
| YES: *Every Sunday for the next two months, I will pray for the sick and the suffering.*

Closing prayer for the meeting
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Saturday morning at the retreat is a time to look at the attitude of gratitude in our life. Let us pray together, thanking for the meeting with the Word of God and with the small group.

Examples
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The photos of posters from the diaconia meeting are for the group animator's information only. There is no need to print them, and they **SHOULD NOT** be shown to the participants.


Selected passages
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- Exodus 15:1-11
- Judith 9:5-11
- Judith 16:1-5, 13-16
- Psalm 25:1-10
- Psalm 71:1-9
- Psalm 139:1-12
- Wisdom 6:12-22
- Sirach 2:1-11
- Sirach 5:1-10
- Sirach 11:14-27
- Sirach 33:7-16
- Isaiah 50:4-11
- Matthew 6:5-18
- Mark 4:22-32
- John 17:9-19
- 1 Corinthians 13:1-10
- 2 Corinthians 12:5-10
- Revelation 4:3-11

Optionally:

- scenarios
- context of the text for the animator on a separate sheet