Scripture
Job 19: 21-27
Job said:
Have pity on me, have pity on me, O you my friends,
for the hand of God has touched me!
Why do you, like God, pursue me,
never satisfied with my flesh?
“O that my words were written down!
O that they were inscribed in a book!
O that with an iron pen and with lead
they were engraved on a rock forever!
For I know that my Redeemer lives,
and that at the last he will stand upon the earth;
and after my skin has been thus destroyed,
then in my flesh I shall see God,
whom I shall see on my side,
and my eyes shall behold, and not another.
My heart faints within me!
New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989, by the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. USCCB approved.
Ignatian Reflection
Our Heart’s Desire
“Mom, can I have…?”
“Mom, I want…”
Sometimes, I joke that my children are bottomless pits of desire.
Then, I remember that I am, too.
It is reasonable to be suspicious of desire. Within a consumerist culture, influencers and multinational corporations have much to gain from manipulating our desires. We may have internalized religious teaching that makes us wary of wanting, fearful that doing so is selfish or may lead to envy, lust, or greed. Desires can be fickle, shallow, and misdirected. They can also move us to care, create, and act.
Today we remember St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus who directed her whole life toward her desire for union with Christ. The author of Job states “my inmost being is consumed with longing.” The Ignatian tradition helps us to notice, name, and sift through conflicting desires to identify and choose that which deepens our relationship with the One who desires us.
As we pray today, we follow St. Ignatius’s repeated encouragement - to ask for what we desire.
—Lauren Hackman-Brooks is a spiritual director, retreat facilitator and writer who currently serves as the director of mission formation for the Jesuit Schools Network of North America.
Ignatian Prayer
Oct 1, 2026
Prayer
The goal of our life is to live with God forever. God, who loves us, gave us life. Our own response of love allows God's life to flow into us without limit.
All the things in this world are gifts of God, presented to us so that we can know God more easily and make a return of love more readily.
As a result, we appreciate and use all these gifts of God insofar as they help us develop as loving persons. But if any of these gifts become the center of our lives, they displace God and so hinder our growth toward our goal.
In everyday life, then, we must hold ourselves in balance before all of these created gifts insofar as we have a choice and are not bound by some obligation. We should not fix our desires on health or sickness, wealth or poverty, success or failure, a long life or short one. For everything has the potential of calling forth in us a deeper response to our life in God.
Our only desire and our one choice should be this: I want and I choose what better leads to the deepening of God’s life in me.
—First Principle and Foundation of the Spiritual Exercises as paraphrased by David L. Fleming, SJ
The Daily Examen is a prayer technique developed by St. Ignatius to help us reflect on the events of the day to discern God's presence and direction. When Ignatius founded the Society of Jesus, he required the Jesuits to practice the Examen twice daily—at noon and at the end of the day. It's a habit that Jesuits, and many other Christians, practice to this day.
The Examen structure presented below is adapted from a technique described by Ignatius Loyola in his Spiritual Exercises. Click here for more information from our partners in ministry at Loyola Press.
Daily Examen
1. Become aware of God's presence
God, I believe that at this moment I am in your presence and you are loving me.
2. Review the day with gratitude
God, you know my needs better than I know them. Give me your light and your help to see how you have been with me, both yesterday and today.
3. Pay attention to your emotions
God, help me to be grateful for the moments when people have affirmed me and challenged me. Help me to see how I have responded, and whether I have been kind to others and open to growth.
4. Choose one feature of the day and pray from it
God, forgive me for when I have not done my best or have failed to treat others well. Encourage me, guide me, and continue to bless me.
5. Look toward tomorrow
As I look to the remainder of this day, make me aware that you are with me. Show me how to be the person you want me to be.
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