A short introduction to the Examen Prayer with few words, but a weighty expectation for you to give it a try. Does a "new" prayer inspire a feeling of hesitancy? No problem, consider this your direct invitation to learn more. The Examen is a way to pray from your direct experiences and reflect on how God was with you, how you were (or were not) with Him, and how to look ahead given what you learned in prayer.
Reminder: Prayer is always driven by God first. It is not your job to "do a good job." It is your job to say yes to receiving the prayer.
Examen Prayer (one way):
1.) Become aware of God's Presence
2.) Thankful/Praise for God's Presence in the Present Moment or anywhere He was present in your life.
3.) Notice places of disconnection or missed connections. Did you have moments of feeling isolated?
4.) Pray from that feeling, moment or any other detail.
5.) Look ahead to what you know is planned for you over the next day.
DO-
Journal after your Examen to begin to identify patterns. Only read back over your Examen journal about once per week, but NOT daily! ID those patterns.
Expect your Examen to take about 10 minutes!
If you find a few things God is revealing taking longer than 10 minutes, write them down in a journal and use those items for prayer at a separate time
Maybe those “extras” can be prayed through with a specific scripture or quote? Ask and you shall receive inspiration on how to pray through those items being revealed.
Look for patterns in your Examen over time:
Do you see patterns of various feelings or circumstances that keep coming up in the Examen. Take those items to prayer separately and notice what Jesus says about them
DON’T-
Please, avoid judging your prayer!
Please, avoid thinking you will get to all 5 steps every day! God is likely in one of the steps on various days, and you will find the invitation to stay there and wait for Him to reveal Himself to you fully. Take it easy and hone your discernment of the invitation from Him.
RESOURCE List:
Daily Examen Meditation:
*Coming soon... applying the Examen with Kids!
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