This week, I led the third week of the third round of our Scripture Meditation Seminar. It looks as though around 20 people will complete the course. When we think of seminars, we usually imagine a lecture-based format. However, as I have become increasingly aware of the importance of small groups, I have structured this seminar around small-group activities as well. I have come to appreciate that a smaller group, where people can build relationships and get to know one another, is better than having a large number of participants.
The seminar is organised roughly as follows: 1.) 30 minutes: Praise, review of Scripture memory verses, prayer, announcements, etc. 2.) 60 minutes: A 30-minute lecture on the main theme, followed by a 30-minute step-by-step session on the practical aspects of Scripture meditation. 3.) 45–50 minutes: Small-group discussion. Including breaks, each session lasts approximately two and a half hours. During the first four weeks, participants meet in person. For the remaining four weeks, they put what they have learned into practice and share their reflections in their small-group chat rooms. I believe that two months is an ideal amount of time for a new practice to become a habit.
In the past, I did not have much interest in teaching people how to meditate on Scripture. I wondered whether it was really necessary. The idea of teaching meditation in a rigid, theoretical way seemed somewhat artificial and at odds with the very nature of meditation. I also questioned whether there was anything particularly special to teach about it. Couldn’t people simply do it? However, over the past year or two, I have realised that I had been overlooking something very important about Scripture meditation. This led me to the conviction that meditation is something we really do need to learn.
I have practised Scripture meditation for nearly 35 years, ever since my university days. Yet there were aspects of it that I had never properly understood. Once I recognised and corrected these, the way I read the Bible changed. I also began to experience real, practical changes in my life. These experiences strengthened my conviction that teaching people how to meditate on Scripture is essential. With this in mind, I organised my thoughts and experiences from years of meditation into seven lectures. What I am particularly thankful for is that these lectures are not limited to Scripture meditation alone. They address themes that run through the whole of Christian life, with a good balance between theory and practice. Personally, I am very pleased with how the material has come together.
Having now led the seminar twelve times, I have continually revised and refined both the lecture content and the practical guidance that helps participants learn how to meditate. I feel that the programme has now reached a fairly mature and well-developed stage.
Looking ahead, I would like to use this resource to serve churches in mission fields and diaspora churches in urban communities. My first plan is to share the programme with pastors of Nepali churches whom God has brought into my life, so that they can, in turn, teach their own congregations. I would also like to provide those who complete the seminar with complimentary copies of the English-language QTin devotional booklet for a certain period as a form of missionary support. Through this, I hope to offer practical help in meeting the spiritual needs of these churches. I pray that God will be with us, granting us His wisdom and strength.
