Week 3: Gate & Good Shepherd (John 10)
EXAMEN TO REVIEW THE DAY
After you have quieted yourself and have become aware of God’s loving gaze and presence, actively prepare your heart to be open and responsive to the spiritual movements Holy Spirit may reveal to you in your review of the day.
Pray for grace to see clearly. Lord, I pray for the grace to consider my internal and external life truthfully and to share Your desire for my life.
Pray with gratitude. Holy Spirit, I pray for you to reveal 3 moments from today. May I be grateful to God for these gifts.
Review the emotions from today. Lord, show me the emotions I had today, whether strong or gentle, as I reacted or responded to the day’s events.
Choose one emotion and pray from it. Lord, I offer up this emotion and want to talk with you about it. I will listen deeply to you for any answer, insight or direction you have for me.
Look toward tomorrow. Lord, as I reflect upon the grace and insight you gave me today, may I discover how it might help me live tomorrow with even greater faith, hope and love, for your glory and the service of others. Amen.
Lectio Divina
This can be used individually or by group leaders to gently guide their group. Having a different person and gender read the scripture out loud each time is beneficial.
Meeting with and Listening to the Word of God in Scripture
Ready (Silence, Stillness): Relax into a comfortable position. Become still. Breathe deeply. You might use a breath prayer X3. By inhaling “God is with me” and exhaling “I am listening” or “Lord God, Son of Man, I am listening to You.” Offer a prayer of intent to be fully present to the Lord with the “ears of your heart” such as “Here I am. Speak Lord, for your servant is listening.”
Read (Listening): Slowly read the chosen passage/verses twice. (Reading out loud engages the whole body.) Listen for that still quiet voice that seems to draw your attention to a word or phrase as if it is being spot lighted, underlined, highlighted, bolded, made to shimmer. It is like Jesus saying “this is my word to you today.” Whether the word or phrase seems to resonate with you or if you resist this word or phrase… stay with it. Gently repeat the word or phrase that touched your heart without analyzing or judging. Just ponder, ruminate as you write this word/phrase in the middle of your paper and draw a circle or other shape around it. Keep tracing around the shape as you ponder and savor the word(s) in the silence. ***
Reflect (Receiving): Slowly read again to “hear” or “see” Jesus in the text. It can become a meeting place with the one who loves you and gave His life for you. Continue to ponder and savor your word or phrase and then prayerfully ask where this word or phrase needs to be heard or to touch your life… or where it already connects in your life. If in a gospel or story passage, where are you in the scene? Who are you? Allow questions to form like what in my life needs this? How is Christ, the Word, touching my experience and life? As Holy Spirit brings things to mind, write them down around the shape containing your word/phrase. Continue to do this as Holy Spirit prompts. As you continue to reflect on these, draw a line from the shape to these thoughts. You might desire to enclose each connected thought (thoughts can be ideas, images, etc) with a shape too. Allow your reflection to penetrate your heart for a prayerful response and draw you into conversation with God about your life and the message Christ, the Word, is giving you. Remember, you are accepted and loved just the way you are, and cherished enough not to want you to stay there!
Respond (Dialoguing) : Read the scripture once more for the purpose of experiencing Jesus calling you forth into being and doing. What is the Word of God, Jesus, in the text calling you to do or to become today or this week? Listen for your deepest and truest response. Allow this to time to probe the depths of who you are and what you do in the midst of your challenges, issues and relationships. Have a heart to heart talk with the one who is deeply committed to you and loves you.
Rest (Being, Contemplation): This is a time to give everything back to God allowing yourself to just be with Him. A time to wait, yield, trust, abandon yourself to God. It is like resting in a “WOW…this is the God I serve who loves me and desires to be with me!” Rest. Abide. Enjoy your still, quieted soul. Do not rush nor divorce this from any form of prayer, especially this one.
Resolve (Becoming that includes compassion and action, incarnation, praxis): Determine to become, live into the the “word” spoken to you by the “Word”! This is the fruit of transformation that is taking place. Continue to watch and listen for the message God gave you as you take it into your day. Be attentive to how it might connect with your experiences today, this week. Take your new or renewed God perspective, attitude, challenge or change and live it! Put flesh on it! Notice how God graced you with this message in the evening when you review the day with the Prayer of Examen.
Rejoice (Praising): Notice where you experienced living out this message from Jesus the Word of God. Where did you step into the will of God for you? How did it feel? What are you “seeing”? I hope you can’t help but return to God with rejoicing, offering your gratitude and praise! Share this experience giving glory to God with your life group or faith friends! You might even bring the paper back with you to “Show and Tell”.
*** Life Group Facilitators or a Group Leader can pause after everyone has had time to write their word or phrase and draw a shape around it. They can invite people to speak the word or phrase without comment or “pass” if desired before continuing.