Monthly Practice: The Daily Examen

This monthly practice is drawn from the earliest season of Common Ground. It was published in the midst of the first COVID-19 lockdown, in Eastertide 2020. While the immediate effects of the pandemic are long past, something of the urgency it created remains with us, woven into the fabric of our post-COVID world. And so when it comes to the daily examen, it turns out that this ancient practice remains as wise and needful as ever. Because of this, we’ve kept this piece largely unchanged in the hope that, as you recall those months in 2020, you’ll also sense something of the importance of this practice for your life now.

The daily examen. What seems to be such a quiet, merely personal habit of reflection is in fact a spiritual practice that is deeply concerned with the common good—with our social and political life. Like so many of the good habits of Jesus’s followers, the daily examen is an act of radical love: it resists the dominance of sin and evil, seeking instead to live with others out of the abundance of God’s forgiveness. Don’t be fooled: this is no quiet piousness. And note: this is a practice that will change your life with others, opening all your relationships to God’s grace and initiative! Ed.

We have now entered Easter, that beautiful season of grace and joy in the church calendar. We have seen Jesus triumph: we have been rescued and redeemed, our sin no longer means death, we have been united with Christ, and we can now live in relationship with him.

Every year, the celebration of Easter reinforces just how much God loves us, and reminds us of his deep desire for unity with us. It always makes me consider how I can more deeply integrate my life with the life of Christ and live with deep love and gratitude.

One way I have endeavoured to integrate my life more deeply with Christ is to regularly spend time before him acknowledging my sin and failings. It’s an old practice called the Daily Examen. Friends will joke about the “ol’ Catholic guilt”, and there is probably an element of truth to this. But if this “Catholic guilt” leads me to love the spiritual practice of the Daily Examen, then I’m ok with it.

The Daily Examen, gifted to us by St Ignatius of Loyola in his Spiritual Exercises, is a daily practice of examining our lives. It’s a chance to give thanks for God’s gifts, and to ask for forgiveness for our failures. It is wonderful and grounding. It always gives me a sense of meaning and hope that my strivings throughout the day have a point. It also allows me to recognise Gods’ presence in all the highs and lows of my day.

The examen also includes time to acknowledge our sin to God. This doesn’t mean wallowing in our inability to live a perfect life! Rather, this is an amazing opportunity to name our failings, to sit with the weight of them, and to notice the patterns of your behaviour and any underlying factors. We don’t do this alone, but in God’s presence, and with the help of God’s Spirit. We then—simply—ask for God’s forgiveness. Although my sin and failings might have hindered a full relationship with God, the act of recognising them and coming to God in repentance and gratitude is the most freeing thing I can do. Such sorrow and repentance means that we can then start a journey of change and experience more fully the grace God promises and freely gives.

In this season, good routines and practices have become a lifeline. So, when the days begin to blur and Groundhog Day feels more real than ever, the practice of the Daily Examen can bring meaning and focus. It makes us more aware of God in all moments and reminds us of the areas in our life that need to change. Below I outline a simple examen that I like to follow at the end of each day. We’ve also produced a simple card resource which you can print off and use as a handy prompt—you’ll find that at the end of this article.

However you choose to embrace this, I hope you find it encouraging and helpful.

1. Be still. Relax in God’s presence. Be aware of God’s love for you. Ask the Holy Spirit to help you look honestly at your day.
2. Give thanks. Recall your day, thanking God for his goodness. Allow this gratitude to take you outside yourself and to reorient your life to God, who is truly the centre of all things.
3. Reflect. Prayerfully reflect on the day. What were your motivations? What emotions were to the fore? Where did you fail? Were you aware of God’s presence? Did you take opportunities to grow in faith, hope, and love?
4. Sorrow. Spend time talking with God. Sit with the weight of your sin. Express sorrow for the times you failed to follow God’s direction. Bring these matters to God, asking for his forgiveness.
5. Hopefulness. Tomorrow is a new day. God insists on his love for us! Faithful and just, God forgives us our sins. Now, resolve to cooperate with the Holy Spirit as you endeavour to live a life with God at the centre of everything. Conclude the day’s prayerful review with the Lord’s prayer.

Going through this process can lend itself to other forms of prayer and processing, whether that be journalling, going for a prayer walk, or talking through an issue or revelation with a spouse, flat mate, friend or family member. As these arise, take the opportunities available. Be open to the different ways God will use this time of daily examining, and be encouraged that God, who is over all and through all and in all things, will continue his good work in you, for his glory.

We have created a printable A6 card of the Examen Prayer for you to download and print.

DOWNLOAD HERE >>