Discovering the Power of the Daily Examen: A Gratitude Practice to Change Your Life
“Gratitude gives us eyes to see God, Earth, beauty, love, joy, abundance. Everything we never knew was right there in front of us, waiting. We just needed gratitude to open our eyes.”
— The Gratitude Jar: A Simple Guide to Creating Miracles
About 400 years ago, Saint Ignatius Loyola developed a beautiful gratitude prayer practice called the Daily Examen that's just as inspiring today as it was during his time.
It's a simple practice, but amazingly powerful. Done daily over the course of the year will bring tremendous benefit and insight to your life.
The Examen is an easy, five-step process you can use at the end of your day.
Find a quiet place free of interruptions and get into a calm, relaxed state either sitting or lying down, and complete the following five steps.
This is one of my favorite gratitude practices, and why I included it in my newest book, Give Thanks: A Gratitude Journal.
The Daily Examen
1. BECOME AWARE OF GOD'S PRESENCE.
Look back on the day and note the times you felt God was with you, assisting.
Feel God with you now and ask to become more conscious of God's presence.
It may be helpful to repeat a phrase like, "Be still and know that I am God" (Psalm 46v10), or any other prayer that connects you to a Higher Power.
2. LOOK BACK WITH GRATITUDE.
Review the past 24 hours and notice what you're thankful for. What happened to make you feel blessed?
Take a moment to give thanks to God for providing you with these blessings.
3. TAKE AN HONEST LOOK AT YOUR DAY.
Note everything that happened over the course of the past 24 hours, your interactions with others, and your emotions.
We often rush though each day, not pausing to reflect. Doing a deep, honest reflection of the past day causes us to learn more about ourselves and improve our future actions.
4. CHOOSE ONE PART OF THE DAY, AND PRAY ABOUT IT.
From doing your review, you might find something God is directing you to work on - an emotion, a relationship that needs mending, an unpleasant situation.
Pray for it, ask God's guidance to resolve it.
5. PRAY FOR TOMORROW.
Ask God to guide you tomorrow, leading you to your highest purpose. Send love and light to tomorrow, praying for wisdom and strength.
Feel deep gratitude, knowing God has already answered your prayer and tomorrow is already blessed.
Take some deep breaths, and know that all is well.
DOWNLOAD A FREE PDF OF THE DAILY EXAMEN
This is such a beautiful prayer to end your dayI made a PDF copy of it for you to keep on your nightstand so you don't have to look on a screen to read the instructions. Click here to download a free PDF copy of The Daily Examen
