You may find it helpful to read the chapter Intro to Scripture Meditation before trying any of the Scripture meditation activities.
This activity works well with passages that you can meditate on one verse at a time — Psalms, Jesus’ teaching, some epistles, etc. It may not be best for story or narrative sections.
Choose a passage of Scripture and write it on a piece of paper that you can carry with you. Go out to a peaceful place where you can walk undisturbed. Walk slowly and calmly. As you walk, read the first phrase or verse from your paper. Dwell on it and be attentive to how the Scriptures impact your mind and heart.
Don’t rush, take as much time as you need with each sentence, each phrase, each word. When ready, move on to the next phrase or verse. If you find that a particular word, phrase, or idea stirs up thoughts or emotions, take some extra time with that verse. Bring these emotions and thoughts to God in prayer.
Continue meditating line by line until you have finished the passage. Wrap up with a time of prayer to God expressing how the Scripture impacts you. Finish with a few moments of stillness and silence before God.
Then, take some time to journal about your time meditating on the passage.
Group Option
This activity can be done in a group with the following modifications.
Decide as a group which text you want to meditate on. Have each person write out the passage on a piece of paper that they can carry with them. It is not necessary for each person to use the same Bible version. Decide together where you will walk and how long you will walk (you can decide an ending destination or an amount of time you want to walk). Designate one person who will set a slow, comfortable walking pace.
Divide into groups of 2 to 3 people and take a couple minutes to pray together, committing the time to God. Walk together in your small groups, one group following another at a short distance. If at any point the path becomes too narrow, you can walk single file during that portion. While walking, each person reads silently and meditates on the Scripture individually, verse by verse, as outlined above. It is not necessary for everyone to finish the passage before the agreed on ending time/place.
Once you finish the walk, share in the same groups of 2 to 3 people about your time of Scripture meditation. Focus on listening to each person and making sure everyone has an opportunity to share. End with a brief time of prayer together.
Individually take some time to journal about your interaction with God’s Word.
Possible Scriptures for Meditation
Isaiah 30:15-18
In returning and rest you shall be saved
Psalm 62:5-8
For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence
John 10:7-15
I am the Good Shepherd
Romans 8:31-39
If God is for us, who can be against us