Office of Mission Programs

Office of Mission Programs

A crucifix hanging in front of a stained glass window

Spirituality Resources

Reflection Questions

Questions for Guidance & Awareness

  • What are you trying to tell me or teach me right now?
  • Where are you at work in my life (school, work, relationships)?
  • What/whom do you want me to pray for?
  • What is one thing you want me to do today to put my faith into action?
  • What fears or attachments must I relinquish to walk more faithfully with you?
  • How is my personal mission aligning with SJU’s mission?

Questions for Personal Reflection & Growth

  • How can I show the love of Jesus today?
  • What in my life is not aligned with your will?
  • How can I cultivate a heart that listens more than it speaks?
  • What are the roots of my current worries or fears?
  • What blessing have I overlooked that I should thank you for? 

Questions for Intercession (Praying for Others)

  • Who in my life needs your encouragement or comfort today?
  • How can I best pray for my family, friends, or enemies?
  • Who is struggling and needs me to pray with or for them? How can I be in solidarity with them? 

Simple, Daily Prayer Prompts

  • What is the kindest thing I can do for someone today?
  • What is a decision I need to make that I should bring to you?
  • What is on my heart and mind today?
  • How can I live the Gospel today?

Ignatian (Jesuit) Forms of Prayer

The forms of prayer listed below are specific to our Jesuit tradition, rooted in the Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius of Loyola (1491–1556), who founded the Society of Jesus–known as the Jesuits. 

 

The Examen: 

This is a form of prayer that invites you to reflect back on your day with God. (Think of it as a prayerful form of highs and lows).

  1. Place yourself in God’s presence. Give thanks for God’s great love for you.
  2. Pray for the grace to understand how God is acting in your life.
  3. Review your day — recall specific moments and your feelings at the time.
  4. Reflect on what you did, said, or thought in those instances. Were you drawing closer to God, or further away?
  5. Look toward tomorrow — think of how you might collaborate more effectively with God’s plan. Be specific. Close this time with God with a simple prayer. 

 

Ignatian Contemplation (Imaginative Prayer):

This is one way of praying with scripture that consists of imagining yourself in a Gospel scene. It transforms scripture reading into a vivid, interactive experience, where one becomes a participant rather than a passive observer. 

Some Suggested Gospel Scenes: 

  • Mark 1:23–28

  • Mark 4:35–41

  • Luke 10:29–37

  • Matthew 8:14–17

  • John 6:1–14

 

The Colloquy:

This is a method of intimate, heartfelt prayer in the Spiritual Exercises defined as a conversation between friends, where a person speaks to God, Christ, or Mary as one friend speaks to another. It is a spontaneous, honest, and reflective dialogue, often used at the end of a meditation to express gratitude, sorrow, or requests.

Mission Week Colloquy Questions adapted from the Ignatius’ Colloquy from the Spiritual Exercises:

  • What have I done for the common good?
  • What am I doing for the common good?
  • What ought I do for the common good?

 


Suscipe Prayer by Saint Ignatius of Loyola

"Take, Lord, and receive all my liberty, my memory, my understanding, and my entire will—all that I have and call my own. You have given it all to me. To You, Lord, I return it. Everything is Yours; do with it what You will. Give me only Your love and Your grace; that is enough for me".