
Christians are increasingly looking for more depth and intimacy with God in their devotional lives. But devotional spirituality is like a delicate grapevine that flourishes only when planted in the right soil and carefully cultivated in a good climate. Unless it is nurtured, it will wither from neglect and fail to bear fruit. Here is help for readers looking to cultivate a deeper devotional life.The Psalms: A Journal guides readers through three months of "lectio divina", the ancient discipline of sacred contemplative reading using ninety texts from the Psalms that are particularly well-suited to this discipline. These texts -- translated from the original languages by Dr. Kenneth Boa -- have been arranged in biblical sequence. Boa walks readers through a daily four-part sequence of reading, meditation, prayer, and contemplation, and invites readers to engage personally with the text and to record their thoughts and prayers in the process. This journaling component will enhance interaction with each of the readings, and yield a valuable record of a reader's reflections and prayers during these months.

by Arnold Mindell
Blue takes the same lectio divina framework you've just experienced but applies it to contemporary Scripture passages and modern spiritual questions, creating a natural next step for someone who's developed a taste for contemplative reading. Where Boa grounds you in the Psalms' timeless wisdom, Blue shows how this ancient practice speaks directly to the anxieties and uncertainties of our current moment.
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by Anonymous
This 14th-century mystical text is the ancestor of practices like lectio divina, and Johnston's modern translation makes it surprisingly accessible. If you found yourself drawn to the contemplative silence and the stretching toward God in Boa's work, this medieval guide to apophatic prayer—knowing God through what He is *not*—will deepen that hunger in unexpected ways.
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by Pam Rosewell Moore
Here's where I'm asking you to trust me a little: this is a memoir, not a devotional guide, but it's the story of two sisters who discovered that the Psalms—the very texts you've been meditating on—became their lifeline in a Nazi concentration camp. Ten Boom's account of how Scripture moved from intellectual knowledge to visceral, life-sustaining presence will show you what happens when lectio divina isn't a luxury but a necessity.
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by Unknown
This 19th-century Russian spiritual classic follows a wanderer learning the Jesus Prayer through repetition and contemplation—it's essentially a narrative version of what you've been practicing with the Psalms. The unnamed pilgrim's journey of deepening intimacy with God through disciplined, meditative prayer mirrors your own three-month journey, but told as an adventure story that will stay with you long after you finish.
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by Anne Lamott
Lamott writes like she's sitting across from you at a coffee shop, telling you the messy, funny, heartbreaking stories of how God showed up in her life—and she does it with the kind of raw honesty that makes you want to journal your own reflections. If Boa's structured contemplation opened a door, Lamott will show you how to walk through it into your own complicated, grace-filled story.
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