Step 3: Review (the day’s highs and lows with God)
In the third step of the Examen, we review the past day or half-day with God. Like an athlete and his coach watching a video from a recent contest, we and God watch the past few hours of our day as they are projected on the screen of our minds. At various points, we pause the video to stare more closely at an event, or rewind a segment in order to see something we may have missed. As we gaze, we ask questions and take mental notes.
This review is not driven by a dry interest in chronology, as if all we were interested in was a timeline of the day’s events. It is fueled by an interest in theology, spirituality, and morality. We are striving to assess not just what happened in the past day or half-day. We are hoping to gain insight into emotions and motives that drove our behaviors and what God was up to in the midst of these behaviors. We are hoping to observe divine patterns or human habits that teach us something about ourselves and our God.
More specifically, we are seeking to identify situations which reveal both positive and negative things to us. We want to mark the triumphs and the tragedies of the past hours, paying special attention to how God was present in both.
There is much flexibility regarding how we perform this review. Adele Calhoun’s six questions, however, may provide a helpful structure.[i] We might choose one or two of these questions to ponder as we rehearse the past day or half-day:
- For what moment today am I most grateful? For what moment today am I least grateful?
- When did I give and receive the most love today? When did I give and receive the least love today?
- What was the most life-giving part of my day? What was the most life-thwarting part of my day?
- When today did I have the deepest sense of connection with God, others and myself? When today did I have the least sense of connection?
- Where was I aware of living out the fruit of the Spirit? Where was there an absence of the fruit of the Spirit?
- Where did I experience “desolation”? Where did I find “consolation”?
Ultimately, we are endeavoring to become more conscious of the ways in which God showed up during our day and how we helped or hindered God’s activity. These questions enlighten us as to how God is moving in our day. They help us learn what God may be saying to us through the routine of ordinary events.
It is vital to attend to both the high points and the low points when practicing the Examen. Those of us who habitually remember only bad things will be empowered to remember that the day was also filled with good things. And those of us regularly only recall the good moments will be challenged to wrestle with the reality of the bad moments of the day.
Step 4: Resolve (to live for God)
In the final step, we move from pondering over the past to planning for the future. Having reviewed the highs and lows of the past day or half-day, we now consider the half-day or full-day in front of us. We prayerfully ask, “What is God teaching me through this review that will impact the way I live in the next half-day or full day?” If the Examen has revealed some sinful habits, we now consider how to address those habits in the hours before us. If the Examen has brought to mind some recent blessings of God, we now ask how we might live in gratitude and praise during the moments ahead. Based on the review, are there relationships to mend? Are there sins to repent of? Are there tasks which need doing? As we leave the Examen, we resolve to live the next day or half-day in light of what we’ve learned from the past day or half-day.
Taken Ten
Let’s take ten minutes right now and practice the Examen. For practice, let’s just consider the last half-day.
Recognize
Close your eyes. Breathe in and out, slowly. Repeat these words to yourself silently: “You are with me always. You will never leave me nor forsake me.” Recognize that God is present right here and right now.
Request
Quietly ask God to fill you with wisdom and discernment. Repeat this prayer: “God, give me eyes to see what you see. Fill me with insight and illumination as I review this last half-day.”
Review
Lead your mind back several hours and begin to play forward the events as they happened, right up to the present moment. While there are many highs and lows to consider, for practice consider your answer to just these two questions: When today did I have the deepest sense of connection with God, others and myself? When today did I have the least sense of connection? Review the past few hours with just these two questions in mind.
Resolve
Having identified a time of deep connection and a time of superficial connection during the past few hours, now answer this question: What is God saying to me through this review? What do I resolve to do as a result of this review? Is there a relationship to nurture or repair? Is there a work of your flesh to repent of? Is there an issue to lift to God in prayer? Is there a task or project that needs to become a priority? What does God wish you to do based on your review of the past half-day?
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[i] Adele Calhoun, Spiritual Disciplines Handbook (IVP, 2005), 52.
