Today’s scripture: psalm 77 (NRSV) (The Message) (KJV) What might God be saying to me?
My thoughts (David Zier):
As I read today’s psalm, it reminded me of a Prayer of Examen, looking back and seeing God at work in my life. This psalm may be looking back at the journey of God’s people from slavery in Egypt to freedom, and then through the wilderness and to the promised place. But we can do that in our own lives, too. Remembering times of trouble, days of old, searching our souls, remembering God’s works, remembering the deeds, meditating on what is good, reflecting on what may not be so good, and following God’s leading even in uncertain times can flash through our mind as we look back and use examen as our prayer.
When I first heard about prayers of examen, someone told me that when they do prayers of examen, they ask God to guide them when feeling uneasy or lacking peace about something, someone, or a situation. The result? They would learn something about themselves, something they missed, or how they fell short in a situation. She went on to say that she always initially assumed that she was in the right and that would usually be the case before she did prayers of examen. When she started doing prayers of examen, she said she saw the world and situations differently. She was not always in the right, her perspective was not always the right one, and she learned that what she would see and hear may not be what was intended even if she wanted to hold on to it anyway.
As this was shared with me, I could see the “peace” that this woman exuded. I could see and feel that it was working for her in a way that allowed her freedom and growth in spiritual maturity. This was one of those moments where I said, “I want me some of that!” So I incorporated prayers of examen into my own prayer life.
Prayer of Examen is a technique of prayerful reflection on the events of the day, week, or month, in order to detect God’s presence and discern the Spirit’s direction. Prayer of Examen is an ancient practice in the Church that can help us see God’s hand at work in our whole experience — the good and the bad. It can be done from a place of gratitude, or from a place of gaining clearer self-awareness, which really is a place of gratitude.
As you enter into prayer, become aware of God’s presence, whether that is a special place, prayer, song, etc. Then review the time with gratitude, looking over the good stuff (consolation). Also take time to look at where things did not go so well (desolation), but approach it with an open heart and mind, with gratitude for self-awareness and learning. Pay attention to your emotions. Choose one feature of the day and pray from it. Then look toward tomorrow. As you practice, adapt it and expand it to allow yourself growth in gratitude and growth in maturity. You don’t have to do this every day. But incorporating prayers of examen provides times for gratitude and times for self learning, incorporated into prayer.
Thought for the day: What would it look like for me to do prayers of examen? What does God want me to learn about me?
We encourage you to include a time of prayer with this reading. If you need a place to get started, consider the suggestions on the How to Pray page.