Praying with Scripture can be done alone or with others. When done with others, it can be a means of sharing more deeply the faith that you attempt to live out day by day. We believe that one of the ways God is manifested to us is through the Scriptures. When we prayerfully read the Scriptures, we open our minds and hearts to the Spirit of God. We can be both challenged and affirmed by the Word of God.

To utilize these prayer activities to prepare for Sunday Mass, use the Sunday Lectionary readings, especially the Gospel reading, as a focus for your prayer. Here are four suggested prayer activities to use with any Scripture passage.

Prayer Activity One

Select a Scripture passage and then read it slowly and deliberately. Identify lines or phrases that stand out for you. In a group: read the passage once, and then ask people to call out the word or phrase that “jumped out at them.” Read it again, and invite people to call out a new word or phrase. Conclude with a third reading. Afterward, invite the group to spend a minute or two in conversation with God about what God is trying to say to them in the passage.

Prayer Activity Two

Take a passage of Scripture and make it a first person reading, as if the lines were being spoken personally to you. For example, take First Corinthians 13:4-8 – “Love is patient, love is kind.” – and personalize the reading by inserting people’s names into the reading – name is patient, name is kind, etc.

Prayer Activity Three

Create a dialogue between a passage of Scripture and a contemporary news story from a newscast or the internet. Select a story that deals with the same topic or issue as the Scripture passage or vice versa. Read part of the story; then read part of the passage. Return to the story and then back to the passage. Name your thoughts and feelings of how the Scripture passage relates to current realities. Instead of a specific news story, you can also choose to focus on a current crisis or a particular event in today’s world.

Prayer Activity Four

Pray the Great Commandment (Mark 12:30) by making each part of the commandment a prayer reflection: Read “love the Lord your God with all your heart” and pause to think about how you love God and how you experience God’s love.

Read “love the Lord your God with all your soul” and pause for silent reflection.

Read “love the Lord your God with all your mind” and pause to think of ways God’s word has touched your life.

Read “love the Lord your God with all your strength” and pause to think of all the ways you do what God asks of you.

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