Lord, I ask for a deep knowledge of all that I have received from you so that gratitude might inspire me to love and serve you in everything.
During this week take time for each day’s reflection as it looks back over the Spiritual Exercises, noticing God’s gifts.
Day 1:
Reflection: Ignatius says love ought to find its expression primarily in deeds more than words. How has God acted in your life over the years? Write these specific things down and spend some time in gratitude.
Song: “My Redeemer is Faithful and True”
Day 2:
Reflection: Consider what surfaced for you when contemplating creation and God’s love during the Principle and Foundation and the First Week. Keep in mind you are not doing a review of whole sections, but rather recalling what stands out to you the most. As you do this follow Ignatius’ instruction (SE 234):
“Bring to memory the benefits received, of creation, redemption, and particular gifts, pondering with much feeling how much God our Lord has done for me, and how much He has given me of what He has, and that the same Lord desires to give me himself as much as he can, according to his divine ordination. And with this to reflect on myself, considering with much reason and justice, what I ought on my side to offer and give to his Divine Majesty, that is to say, everything that is mine, and myself with it, as one who makes an offering with much feeling.”
Day 3:
Reflection: Consider what surfaced for you when contemplating Jesus’s ministry and sacrifice in the Second and Third Weeks. Keep in mind you are not doing a review of whole sections, but rather recalling what stood out to you the most. Then ponder these per Ignatius’s instructions for Day 2.
Day 4:
Reflection: Consider what surfaced for you when contemplating Life and God-given gifts in the Fourth Week. Keep in mind you are not doing a review of the whole section, but rather recalling what stood out to you the most. Then ponder these per Ignatius’s instructions in Day 2.
Day 5:
Repetition of any of the days this week.
Day 6:
Spend your day in praise and gratitude to God. Let your gratitude for God’s love for you fuel your desire to give to others.
Reviewing the Week:
Look back on the past week. What stands out to you the most as you have prayed and reflected on gratitude for God’s gifts? Talk with God about your reflections. Close with poem “Fall in Love.”