500 years ago a follower of Jesus called Ignatius of Loyola wrote what he called The Spiritual Exercises. In it, Ignatius proposes a series of routines meant to engage a follower in the recognition of God’s presence and God’s direction for the follower throughout their daily rhythms.
These routines began with a recognition of sin in the life of the follower, followed by a daily examination of how God’s presence was discovered and ultimately how God was to be seen directing the development of the believer.
Over time, many faithful Christians have adapted 5 steps of the Examen prayer and incorporated them into a nightly ritual. Follow the prompts below at the end of your day. This process has proven to be a formational daily rhythm for countless followers of Jesus.
AWARENESS
Become aware of the presence of God and the love God has for you.
- Call the presence of God to mind.
- God is present with you/us, calling us into what we were created to be.
THANKGSIVING
Review the day with gratitude.
- What are you thankful for today?
- Go through the events of your day.
- Think about your day in movements or walk hour by hour from the time you woke up.
- Name God’s gifts to you big and small today
REFLECTION
Reflect on the events of the day with fixed attention on the presence of God.
- Rather than ask if or where God was present, we’re assuming that God is present. Here, we’re recognizing God’s presence in our day.
- When did I feel strong emotions today?
- What brought me joy?
- What brought me disappointment?
- When did I feel great love?
RESPONSE
Choose and respond to one moment in the day.
- Is there something God is inviting you to pray about through the Holy Spirit?
- Is there someone God is inviting you to participate with more fully?
- Reconnection, reconciliation, love?
- Is there sin and struggle God is inviting you to address?
- This isn’t an attempt to manufacture warm and fuzzy feelings.
- The Examen is about God’s direction in our lives, so addressing the darkness that may arise is necessary and formational.
LOOK FORWARD
Think about the following day.
- What do the next 24 hours hold?
- Maybe look at your schedule.
- Seek God’s presence and pray for the new day.