What is Lectio Divina?
One of my primary “rituals” for kindling creativity, whether pen or paintbrush, is prayer and Scripture. I believe God is the Original Artist. One of the ways I come into contact with His amazing creativity is through His word. Who can help but create, when you hang out with THE Creator?
Here is a quote from the very first art course I created, called “Let Us Make”:
“You and I are formed of the dust of the ground, yet we have in us the Divine Breath. We are a beautiful combination of earth and heaven, finite and infinite, low and high. It is our unique role to “combine both dust and glory”. Sheila Atchley
Did you know that at least 1/3 of the Bible was written as poetry? This tells me that, just as God is the original Artist, He is also the original Wordsmith! His word is also holy art. And, alongside men and women down through the ages, you and I are completely free to create art from His Art.
So I want to briefly touch on an age-old practice called Lectio Divina.
Lectio Divina is Latin for “Divine Reading”. It is the ancient art of reading Scripture in a way that both holds the space for hearing God speak through it, and holds the space for your own creative response. Here are 5 steps in Lectio Divina:
Read. I personally read 2 chapters in the Old Testament, one chapter New Testament, one Psalm, and one Proverb. I do this, if not every day, I do this each time I sit down to the ritual of Lectio Divina – or, what most Protestants like me call “Quiet Time”.
Pray. Pray before you read the Scriptures. Just one simple request, such as, “Holy Spirit, here I am. I know you want to fellowship with me.” Then pray again, as you read, if thoughts, people, or concerns rise up in your conscious mind, as you read. Then, briefly pray after you read. Simply close your Bible, asking the Holy Spirit to bring back to your memory the things you and He talked about today.
Ruminate. Some of you may have seen my social media hashtag #createdontruminate or #creation>rumination
However, in Lectio Divina, a kind of holy rumination is allowed! Normally I say “rumination leads to ruination”. But when it comes to reading Scripture, to ruminate is to read, re-read, and search for significance within a text.
Example: it was through “rumination” that I suddenly saw that bird murmurations were in the Bible! It had been there all along, tucked away inside a verse found in Isaiah chapter 60!
Look at the text you are reading from many different angles, and you will be “ruminating” it.
Meditate. Get silent before the text. Let your mind get quiet - not empty. Breathe deeply. You might very well experience the peaceful presence of God when you do! But even if you do not “feel” anything, you are allowed to imagine that you do! See yourself resting in the arms of the God who spoke the universe into existence. Rest in the fact that He is more committed to your creativity than you are.
Serve. Take some sort of action. This completes the whole process. Lectio Divina is incomplete without action. Take what you have read, and serve your community with it. This can look like making soup for a neighbor. It can look like apologizing to your family, sending off a quick card to encourage someone, OR writing a poem, or painting a picture. Do not discount art forms such as poetry or painting as being an act of service. Also, do not underestimate the value of taking a passage and “serving yourself”…creating art that comforts you, and integrates what you’ve learned. That act will always eventually become service to others.
Listen to me, friend. One of the most lavish and generous things you can ever do, is to create something good that comes from your very core – and then share that good thing with others in the hopes that their heart will feel nurtured. Service is not just about cleaning toilets or making soup. It can be about making beauty.
I want to bring you with me, as I take the poetry and prophecy of Isaiah 60 and serve you with it. Come with me as I “Lectio Divina” – as I meditate on Isaiah 60, and act on it with paint.*
*please note: if you use the Amazon link below, the paint colors will be approximate but not exact, since Amazon does not carry Hobby Lobby paints.
You Made Something With the Word
Friend, if you made it this far, I hope you’ll pause for a moment.
You did not merely watch a class.
You practiced attention.
You came close to Scripture.
You made something with your hands.
You allowed the Word of God to become color, shape, and prayer.
That is no small thing.
In a world that constantly asks us to scroll, skim, rush, react, and consume, instead you chose to slow down and make.
You took Isaiah’s ancient invitation, “Arise, shine; for thy light is come,” and you let it pass through your imagination, your body, and your brush.
This is part of why I believe so deeply in creative practice.
Art-making is not extra.
Beauty is not frivolous.
The work of your hands can become a form of listening, a form of prayer, a form of service, and a way of remembering what is true.
You were made from dust and glory.
And sometimes one of the most faithful things you can do is sit down with simple supplies and make a visible response to invisible grace.
Where to Go From Here
If this class stirred something in you, I want to invite you to stay close.
My work lives at the intersection of Christian faith, beauty, and embodied creative practice in midlife and what I call “fourth quarter”.
I create classes, writings, paintings, and resources for people who want more than information. They want to be formed by beauty.
They want to live more awake.
They want to recover wonder.
They want their home, marriage, creativity, and daily rhythms to become places where the goodness of God can be seen and felt.
If that is you, here are a few beautiful next steps.
Keep Creating With Me
Explore my art and writing
Visit my website to see original paintings, prints, essays, and current offerings. My hope is that everything there feels like an open east window.
Join my email list
This is where I share new classes, creative prompts, reflections on Scripture, art, beauty, and the occasional strong opinion about why making real things in the real world still matters very much.
Watch for upcoming creative Scripture classes
If you enjoyed this Isaiah 60 class, I’ll be creating more opportunities to practice Scripture, prayer, and art-making together.
Explore deeper offerings
From creative workshops to faith-based classes and my work around The Art of Middle Marriage, I’m building resources for people who want to practice beauty in the real stuff of life, not just admire it from a distance.
A Final Word
Do not despise small beginnings.
A small painting can be a threshold.
A single phrase of Scripture can become a lamp.
A quiet hour with paper and paint can begin to reopen a part of you that has been waiting, patiently, under the surface.
You may have come here simply wanting to learn a creative practice.
But perhaps something deeper was also happening.
Perhaps you were being reminded that the light still comes.
Perhaps you were being invited to arise in some small, honest way.
Perhaps you were discovering that your creativity is not separate from your faith, but one of the places where your faith becomes visible.
I am so glad you were here.
Keep listening.
Keep making.
Keep practicing beauty.
And when you are ready, come find the next open door.
With love,
Sheila