The Examen is an ancient form of prayer used to describe a time of reflection at the end of the day. It can be used at any time as a means of reflecting, with God, on our lives, and learning to identify the ‘interior movements through which divine revelation unfolds’.[1]
We start by being still in God’s presence, and asking the Holy One to walk with us and, as we ask ourselves a series of questions, to bring to mind those things that are important for us to reflect on.
In this prayer of Examen, we will ask ourselves questions based on the passage from Growing up to be a child we have just read:
- In what areas of my spirituality am I ‘hypotonic’? Consider those areas where I feel weak, or where my spiritual growth is underdeveloped.
- In what areas of my spirituality am I ‘hypertonic’? Those areas where I try hard but somehow seem to fail, are there areas of my life where I try too hard?
- In what areas of my spirituality am I sitting still, afraid to get up and walk? Are there areas where I am afraid to try, perhaps because I have previously fallen or been hurt?
- In what areas of my spirituality am I standing and walking, secure in the knowledge of God’s love and care for me?
Spend time pondering each of these questions. When you have finished, you may want to write your thoughts in your journal and come back to them at a later date to review where God has led you.
[1] Dennis Linn, Sheila Fabricant Linn, Matthew Linn (1995) Sleeping with bread. Paulist Press
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