Savoring God’s Word: Cultivating the Soul-Transforming Practice of Scripture Meditation

by Jan Johnson

Publisher:

NavPress

, 2004

Overview

Are you getting all you can from the Bible? God invites us not only to read the Bible, but to immerse ourselves in it. Then as we read, we find ourselves connecting with God so that we are changed into the kind of people we’ve always wanted to become. God does speak to us as we slow down and hear that still small voice.

Scripture meditation is an integral second step to reading the Bible. With a warm, personal style, respected author and speaker Jan Johnson:

• Demystifies the spiritual discipline of meditation
• Dispels fears and misunderstandings
• Describes how to form a new, profound way of seeking God

See what happens when you deliberately set out to ponder and meditate on God’s words in Scripture. With Jan’s helpful exercises to help you ease into your new spiritual discipline, it’s more doable and practical than you think. Experience a new closeness to God by developing a new passion for the Word. Watch God use it to transform your soul.

The Logos Bible Software edition of this volume is designed to encourage and stimulate your study and understanding of spiritual disciplines. Scripture passages link directly to your English translations and to the original language texts, and important concepts link to dictionaries, encyclopedias, and a wealth of other resources in your digital library. In addition, you can perform powerful searches by topic and find what other authors, scholars, and theologians have to say about faith, meditation, and Christlikeness.

Key Features

• Focuses on the practice of scripture meditation
• Functions as a resource for a group study or individual study
• Includes questions and activities for further reflection and study

Contents

• Why Meditate? A Path to Spiritual Transformation
• Why People Don’t Meditate: Common Reasons for Resistance
• What Is Scripture Meditation? How Meditation Differs from Bible Study
• Inviting God to Speak to You: Practical Guidelines for Meditation
• Hearing God Well in Meditation: Overcoming Obstacles to Hearing God’s Voice
• Tasting the Words of Scripture: The Ancient Art of Lectio Divina
• The Sanctified Imagination: Using Ignatian Meditation to Walk Inside Scripture
• Other Meditative Approaches: Enjoying Diverse Paths into Scripture and God’s Presence

Praise for the Print Edition

With Savoring God’s Word, Jan Johnson shows us how meditation works and how it can be a major resource for renewal of the mind and soul. This is a discipline for which there is no substitute, and anyone can learn to do it becoming, as promised, ’like trees planted by rivers of water.’

—Dallas Willard, professor and former director, School of Philosophy, The University of Southern California

Jan explains what it means to be quiet in God’s presence, dwell in His Word, and listen to what he has to say. This book can so transform your relationship with God that you may never be the same again!

—Kathleen Hart, chaplain to student wives, Fuller Theological Seminary

There’s no better place to hear God speak than through scriptural meditation, and there’s no better guide for the how-tos than Jan Johnson. Savoring God’s Word can direct you or your group toward heartfelt encounters with God.

—Klaus Issler, professor of Christian education and theology, Talbot School of Theology, Biola University

Jan Johnson’s book Savoring God’s Word is a feast. Deep in its understanding of Scriptural meditation and simple in helping the reader to grasp the important practice, this book enables all to hear God’s word and for God to grow us into his image.

—Tom Park, director, Fuller Theological Seminary Southwest

Product Details

• Title: Savoring God’s Word: Cultivating the Soul-Transforming Practice of Scripture Meditation
• Author: Jan Johnson
• Publisher: NavPress
• Publication Date: 2004
• Pages: 176

About Jan Johnson

Jan Johnson enjoys speaking at retreats and conferences, hoping to ignite within listeners a burning desire to know God in an authentic way and to live out a kingdom life in the daily companionship of Jesus. Unwilling to minimize the mystery of God or the human struggle, Jan presents biblical principles and characters in down-to-earth ways so that people can connect with God and become more thirsty for God. Her observations about life’s dilemmas give listeners a lot to study, ponder, and laugh about. As an author and spiritual director, Jan holds degrees in Christian education and spiritual direction, which along with many years of Bible teaching, have equipped her to write hundreds of published Bible study sessions. She is also the author of 16 books and more than one thousand newspaper and magazine articles. Jan is the author of 13 books and more than one thousand Bible studies.

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