Malsum Muksang (Bible meditation) for spiritual growth : a program on Bible reading and meditation for Bupyung Seventh-day Adventist church in South Korea

Abstract

Christians believe that Bible reading is essential for faith development and spiritual growth. It should then be a priority of those who minister to the churches to encourage members practice the spiritual discipline of Bible reading. Yet, there is a need of concrete programs and strategies to promote Bible reading among the Seventh-day Adventist Churches in South Korea. The few existing programs lack structure and proper design. This project introduces basic biblical and theoretical principles on leading church members to read the Bible. The principles and theories become the foundation for a developed practical strategy designed to give church members a meaningful reading of the Bible. This project produces a pilot training program for malsum muksang (Bible meditation) which means a meditative and responsive Bible reading. The program basically employs malsum muksang as the main strategy for meaningful Bible reading. Particularly, the process employs seven guided, reflective questions to generate meaningful Bible reading. The principles and strategies introduced in this study may be adapted by other churches in South Korea and beyond to promote the spiritual discipline of Bible reading.