Prayer of Examen
From the Pocket Prayers Summer Series
The Prayer of Examen helps us to reflect on our day, as a kind of Backwards Prayer. This debrief at the end of the day helps us to see where God has been present in the everyday. We reflect with gratitude, and look out for the little bits of beauty in our days. Read on to find out more, or go straight to the audio above to hear me lead you through the prayer of Examen.
St Ignatius of Loyola popularised this type of prayer to help people find God in their daily lives. Our days can fly by, leaving us wondering where the time has gone and what we have achieved. It can be easy to miss the divine presence but when we look back we can notice God’s fingerprints.
“The examen helps you to “realise” the presence of God. For me, it transcends any proofs for the existence of God by asking you to notice where God already exists in your life, where your yesterdays were beautiful. With that awareness you will begin to notice God’s presence more and more in your day.”
James Martin, SJ ‘The Jesuit Guide to (Almost) Everything’
I often pray the Examen, or at least start it, when I’m lying in bed at night. I appreciate the opportunity to reflect back on my day and talk about it with God. Sometimes I fall asleep before I’m finished, considering what I’m grateful for, and that’s just fine. I love that this practice encourages us to be more attentive to our lives, to seek out the gifts of beauty, connection and love in the midst of our chaos. This can be a helpful tool for decision making and discernment too. The steps may seem complicated at first, but I’ve found they’ve become a rhythm of their own.
Become aware of God’s presence.
Hear God welcome you by name.
Review the day with gratitude.
Think back through your day and ask the Holy Spirit to help you to see your day as God sees and understands it.
Pay attention to your emotions.
Look for the life-giving moments. Name them, savour them, how did they reveal God? Then look for the NOT-so-life-giving moments too.
Choose one feature of the day and pray from it.
What are the facts, feelings, impacts, is there anything you might have done differently? Talk with God about it, knowing his compassion.
Look toward tomorrow.
What does tomorrow hold for you? How do you want to ‘be’ in each situation? Talk to God about it, and now, take your leave of God – as of a friend.
There is a lovely Playlist of Examen Prayers here, including one to use with children. At dinner we often talk about our ‘Best Bits and Worst Bits’ of the day with the family, as a simple first step towards practising reflection and paying attention.
Jen at Cobbleworks also has a gorgeously creative and accessible take on The Examen: here’s her website and Instagram.
Why not try playing with the Examen this week, you could use this prayer a night or two, or give yourself time to use these steps to reflect on the past week/month/season? I’ll be back on Saturday with a conversation with Paul about how we’ve found our week with the Examen for paid subscribers.
May you notice where your yesterdays were beautiful, and may that bring hope for tomorrow.
Debbie
This post is part of our Pocket Prayers Summer Series:
