Prayer – The Examen of Consciousness Part 1
I find that a deep, consistent prayer life is very difficult to sustain and even engage in. God made me to be a doer, a lover of crossing off the items on my list. I’m someone who loves to achieve. When I pray about something, I’m usually already acting out my solution as I’m praying. Simply, I find it difficult to be still. During our staff chapel this week we walked through the Jesuit tradition of “The Examen of Consciousness.” While any traditions can be taken to an extreme I found the exercise helpful and thought I would explain the steps in 4 different blog posts of the next couple days. Information used from the Jesuit Society of Jesus.
Before you start try to be in a place where you will be least likely to be disturbed, distracted, etc. Jesuits would often light a candle to mark the beginning of their time in prayer.
Step #1: Recall that you are in the presence of God. (Thanksgiving)
No matter where we are in creation we are in the midst of God. As you begin to quiet yourself you become aware of God in you and in the people and events around you. Ask the Holy Spirit to let you see all those around you as He sees them. If you have difficulty quieting yourself, being able to concentrate there is another tradition that I find helpful. Because I like to “do” things I often need something tactile to concentrate on. The Jesuits would have a tradition of taking a deep breath in while Saying Jesus’ name and then exhaling slowly while saying something similar to, ” Would you grant me your mercy today.” They would often spend the first couple minutes of their prayer time focusing on their breath while saying His name and asking for His mercy in their life. Personally, I found this an extremely helpful exercise in simply calming me down and entering into what Jesus would have for me during that time.
Simple Next Step: Practice being quiet for 4 minutes.
I would encourage you to take only 4 minutes, perhaps even right now, and take whatever steps you need to calm your mind and spirit and reflect on His goodness for you and those around you. Lord, we realize that all, even myself, is a gift from you.
What Did you Think and/or Experience?
What were you made aware of during your 4 mins?
Did it feel like a long time?
Did God remind you of some thought or idea?
Did the exercise feel “weird?”
This is an interesting approach, devoting one post to each step of the Examen instead of presenting all at once. The Examen is a simple but powerful way to pray and to reflect on God’s presence in your life each day. Good luck with incorporating it into your prayer life.
Thanks Denise. I thought that for those who do not have a consistent habit of praying that an incremental approach may be a great starting point. I appreciate your feedback!