Having not been into the Bible recently, I decided to return again tonight, and found that the liturgical reading for today (Moses coming off the mountain with the ten commandments, meditating on the nature and purpose of a covenant) lent itself very well to a bit of imaginative contemplation.
For those that don't know, imaginative contemplation is exactly what it says - meditating and praying your way through an imagined scene from the Bible, typically using a gospel reading, though I've heard anything with a bit of action and closeness to the Christ can work just as well. It follows an initial familiarisation with the reading then asking God to lead you in your imagination, and letting yourself be open to follow the spirit's prompting regarding what you should focus and reflect on.
I initially started with quite a traditional iconic image in my mind of the scene from thousands of years ago and imagined myself as a side character, a young woman visiting with Moses after he'd met with God, and seeing what I could glean for my own personal faith journey from Moses' encounter. I found this image faded quite quickly and didn't satisfy much.
I then asked God again what he wanted me to see, and saw myself in a field in Yalta, looking over the Black Sea, talking directly with Jesus, and felt energised, uplifted and renewed. What I found particularly interesting was that I felt I should allow myself two peaks at the story, with a conscious effort to let go the control of my imaginings and be prepared to ask God, and then follow God, into a more fluid and approachable picture.
I also found it interesting that teaching on imaginative contemplation encourage a conversation with Jesus or one of the other characters, and ending such prayer times with a more traditional short prayer, e.g. Glory Be/ Our Father...
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