Week 2 | Connection: In the Gaze of God, Matthew 3

In the wilderness, our temptation is to go our own way and rely on our own resources and perspectives lurk around every corner. Deliverance is also abundantly present. Our good Father leads us into the wilderness not for temptation but for deliverance … deliverance from all those things that direct our gaze away from God.

We need discernment. What helps direct our gaze to the Lord and what distracts us or creates resistance in us?

In the early 1500’s, Saint Ignatius of Loyola formalized a prayer of discernment known as the Examen. It can be practiced in a variety of formats, and the most basic is this:

Traditionally, the Examen is prayed daily and at the end of the day. However, it can be prayed anytime throughout the day. And the Examen can be prayed over any time period (a specific situation, a week, a month, a year). Additionally, the review can focus on noticing a variety of things in our life with God. It can be more general – anything the Lord brings up in our listening, or it can be specific to something like “living in His gaze.”

Seek to pray the Examen daily over the next week with this focus. What is important is to notice and be aware. Notice without judgment. Often. we can live on “auto-pilot” and having an awareness of these things brings them to a place where we can begin to choose with God’s strength and mercy.