How start a prayer journal is not as difficult as it is imagined when you know some simple steps to follow. Starting a simple prayer journal is easy when you look at it as a personal thing.
That is, a prayer journal contains your spiritual walk with God and your prayer life. So whatever you pen down will be peculiar to you, hence making it easy to flow freely from within.
Therefore, how to start a prayer journal is to reflect on your personal relationship with God and pen down things you hope to expect in your spiritual walk with God. Let go of any outward expectations from others, look within, be more flexible in your thoughts, and allow them to flow freely.
A prayer journal should not be complicated because of how personal prayer journaling is. It is mostly about you, so there should be this sense of the free flow of words; even the language structure and the phrases should all be something peculiar to you.
In addition, when you are penning down your expectations, do not put so much pressure on yourself; let your progress be at your own pace. Remember, you are not in competition with anyone; it is about your spiritual progress.
It is you being intentional with your spiritual life and progressing in your walk with God. When you continue like this, it will help you to know how do you make a simple prayer journal.
Furthermore, let us briefly discuss what is a prayer journal before we look at a few tips that will help us to start a simple prayer journal.
What Is A Prayer Journal?
If you are wondering and asking what is a prayer journal, here is a simple explanation. A prayer journal is a written record of one’s regular personal prayer experience.
It is a notebook or a diary that serves as a tool to write down things you want to pray about and the testimonies that follow.
It is arranged in sections and categories of different prayer requests, Bible portions to meditate on, tips on how to improve your prayer life, and records of how you are progressing in your spiritual growth; therefore, it is a personal record book.
You can also use a smartphone or your PC to do your prayer journaling. You can use any of the applications used for typing or taking down notes for it.
Therefore, prayer journaling is beyond just having a notebook or a tool that you use in writing. It is you taking out time to connect with God and to pen down insights into what God is revealing to you.
Prayer Journaling is also like writing down great insights, illuminations, and revelations from God. In your personal quiet time, when God is speaking to you through His word, what you write down is prayer journaling.
Types Of Prayer Journal
Traditionally, a journal is supposed to be a notebook, sort of like a diary. But thank God for this digital age where we can use our smartphones and computers for diverse purposes. Therefore, we have two types of prayer journals; manual and digital.
The manual prayer journal is the traditional notebook or diary. You can either put it together yourself by following the tips we gave above or buy one depending on your financial strength.
Then for the digital prayer journal, this is something you can arrange by yourself on your phone or computer. In addition, you can synchronize it with any cloud space for safekeeping.
How To Start A Prayer Journal – 9 Ways
1. You Need To Have An Empty Book Set Part For This Purpose
Just like every other journal or diary, the first step how to start a prayer journal is to have an empty notebook set aside specifically for this purpose.
The notebook can be the one with stripes or just plain, and it can be fancy, it can be big or maybe small. It can be a hardcover, or maybe a flexible cover, depending on your budget or your financial capacity.
Nevertheless, if you do not have the finance to get a fancy hard-cover notebook, or you cannot even afford a smaller notebook at all, you can get creative.
Sort for any old notebooks your hands can reach, and then rip out the unused pages from them. Look for any hard paper to use as the cover, then attach it all together with the smaller notebook to make it big (that is if you bought any).
However, the prayer journal looks do not really matter. Just make sure that whatever notebook you are to use is specifically set apart for this purpose.
2. Divide The Books Into Categories/ Sections
One of the ways how to start a prayer journal is to divide the books into categories/ sections. This means you should label different pages for different purposes.
One of the ways to go about this is to label the beginning of every section by writing the title of that section boldly on the front page.
Secondly, you can make it colourful by using different colours of makers to label the beginning of every page. Then on the front page of the prayer journal, write out what each colour means for proper identification.
Finally, you should also have in mind that not all the pages will be of the same number. Let the number of pages you set out for writing prayer topics be more than the pages you will use for answered prayers.
3. Ask God To Inspire You On What You Need To Pray About
Since this is a prayer journal, you need to get God involved. Asking God to inspire you on what you need to pray about is one of the ways how to start a prayer journal.
Have in mind that what you are doing is a spiritual exercise; therefore, do not be too rigid, and do not over-plan. Depend on the direction of the Holy Spirit on what to write down.
Based on this, set a special time to study and meditate on God’s word, and then focus your mind on issues that you intend to pray about and begin to write them down. Also, write down scriptures that will motivate you to pray.
Be fluent, and flow with the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Even when you are not inspired according to how you want it, still go ahead to write it down.
Just flow with whatever comes into your mind. Even the scriptures you will write down let it flow freely from the inside.
4. Write Down Random Things You Need To Pray About
When you finish dividing the books into categories and sections, the next thing to do is to start writing. And in this section, you will write down random things you need to pray about, and this is also a way how to start a prayer journal.
These random thoughts are ideas that randomly flow into your head about why you were praying and meditating on God’s word.
Sometimes, there are random thoughts or ideas that drop in whenever you are studying and meditating on God’s word to pray.
Do not hesitate or waste any time; before you forget it, just pick up your pen and prayer journal and write those thoughts down.
In addition, you can also write down the names of your friends, family members, and people and the challenges you want to help them to intercede about.
You can also write down your personal random needs you wish to pray about, random in the sense that they are not too pressing.
5. Also, Write Out Specific Needs You Want To Pray About
In the previous point, the things to write down were random thoughts and ideas you need to pray about. However, in this section, you are to write out specific needs you want to pray about.
There are specific needs that are personal to you, things you need to achieve, or maybe a spiritual height you want to reach. You are to write down issues that are really personal and pressing to you that you want to pray about.
Like, if you want to improve in your prayer life, and you want God to give you the zeal to be praying a lot, or you want to improve in your Bible study life. If you want to study and understand deep things in the Bible, you can also write it down here.
It could also be you want God to give you direction on how to go about different challenges in different areas of your life that are personal to you. Like areas where you are weak, things that often cause you to fall into sin, you pen them down in this area.
Everything that has to do with your personal challenge and you want God to deliver you from, you pen it all down in this section.
6. Write Out Weekly/ Monthly Ideas Of What You Intend To Achieve
Part of how to start a prayer journal is to create a section where you will be writing out weekly/ monthly ideas of what you intend to achieve.
The purpose of a prayer journal is to help you to write down prayer requests. Sometimes the prayer request might be what you intend to achieve weekly or monthly.
It can as well be issues you need to present to God or maybe a height you intend to reach in your spiritual journey with God, maybe within a weekly or a monthly period.
Remember you are to write as inspired, so also, you should not be scared of the idea that comes to mind, no matter how big it is; as long as you are inspired, just write it down.
In addition, you should be very detailed when writing it, possibly writing down the time and date for reference’s sake; it is also part of keeping a record.
7. Create A Section Where You Reflect And Write Down Your Progress
To every journey, or anything we hope to achieve, there must be progress, so it is necessary that we need to keep a record of our progress in everything we are doing.
Therefore, in the journey of our work with God, there is a need to keep a record of how we are progressing in our spiritual life and how we are gradually growing and getting better in our walk with God.
So part of how to start a prayer journal is to have in mind to create a section where you will reflect on and write down your spiritual progress in your walk with God.
This is very necessary so that you will know if you are progressing or not. It will help you to know even the pace of how you are progressing spiritually, so you will know if you need to add more effort and be more serious.
It will also build your faith because progress encourages one to keep pushing, and you will see how God has been helping and seeing you through; hence your faith will be boosted to depend more on God.
8. Create A Section Where You Write Down Scriptures To Reflect On
Everything that has to do with prayers must involve scriptures. You cannot make any meaningful prayer without having scriptures attached to it.
Because for your prayers to be answered, you must pray in the will of God (1 John 5: 14). And it is only scriptures that help you to know the will of God and inspires you to pray in His will.
Therefore, it is necessary to create a section where you write down scriptures to reflect on. For you to be motivated to pray, for your faith to be firm on the word of God, and for you to pray in the will of God.
Furthermore, you can possibly write down a few comments attached to the verse of scriptures you will write down for better understanding.
I mean, let your comment on these scriptures be a direct application to your life. Having this in mind will help you know how to start a prayer journal when you want to start making one for yourself.
9. Create A Section Where You Write Out Answered Prayers
One last thing you should also have in mind that will help you know how to start a prayer journal is to create a section where you can write down answered prayers.
Having this section in your prayer journal is essential because records of answered prayers can boost your faith to trust God more and boost your morale to keep on praying even when it seems answers are not forthcoming.
Even in the Bible, you see where the Psalmist say things like, “In my distress, I called to the LORD; I cried to my God for help. From his temple he heard my voice; my cry came before him, into his ears.” (Psalm 28: 6).
The Psalmist also keeps a record of God answering His prayers. So we should create a section where we record answered prayers in your prayer journal.
The Need For A Prayer Journal
I believe everyone knows the distractions that come with the busy daily routine, and sometimes we go through many days without taking time to think deeply and be intentional with our spiritual walk with God.
Sometimes we only just make a quick short prayer, without deep meditation, without any inspiration. We are not even intentional about it.
We just make prayer a normal daily routine, and we do not observe our spiritual life. For this reason, there is a need for every believer to know how to set up a prayer journal. Because it could help to be a great way of evaluating your spiritual progress.
One of the best ways to get organized and keep records of great fulfilments in your life that God is going to do through you is by starting a simple prayer journal.
As we all know, prayer is eminent to every Christian, it penetrates deep into every area of our lives, and hence we cannot live without prayer.
Sometimes when we settle down to have a quiet time with God, we tend to be mostly focused on what we consider as the big ones or pressing needs. In addition, we might forget to pray about certain things, and these things matter as well.
At this point, we see the need for a prayer journal because it helps us to be diverse when praying, keeps us focused, and takes records of accomplishments. More like reminding us how we are progressing and what the Lord is doing in our lives through prayers.
Hence, there is a need for every believer to know how to start a prayer journal. Through prayer journaling, God can give you great profound insight that will lead you to another whole level of your spiritual experience.
How To Start A Prayer Journal For Yourself
Ever wonder how to start a prayer journal for yourself? Here is a way to begin. To start a prayer journal for yourself, you need first visualize what you intend to achieve with it, then get a plain shit of paper, and write down how you want to sectionalize it.
Then if it is a manual prayer journal, you need to get a notebook, but if it is a digital prayer journal, then you need to look for an app on either your smartphone or your pc that is suitable for you to keep notes.
Then the sections you wrote down on plain shit of paper, arrange it that way in the notebook or the application you are using on your smartphone or PC. Once these are properly arranged, you can freely start writing.
Examples Of Prayer Journals In The Bible
We cannot engage in any activity that will aid our spiritual growth or walk with God without looking into the scriptures to draw out examples to follow. Therefore, let us look at examples of prayer journals in the Bible.
There are so many examples of prayer journals in the Bible. In Habakkuk 2: 2 (NIV), it says, “Then the LORD replied: “Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it.”
Other portions in the book of Psalms, like Psalms 40, 69, and 80, are Psalms of David crying out for rescue. And in Psalms 3, 8, 18, 22, and 23, He was thanking and praising God for rescuing him.
This is a track record of prayer requests and answered prayer, which is a typical Biblical example of what to do on how to start a prayer journal.
Bible Verses To Encourage You In Your Prayer Journal
1. Philippians 4: 6 – 7 (NIV) Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
2. Matthew 7: 7 – 8 (NIV) “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.
3. Psalm 5: 1 – 3 (NIV) Give ear to my words, O LORD, consider my sighing. Listen to my cry for help, my King and my God, for to you I pray. In the morning, O LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning, I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation.
4. 1Timothy 2: 1 – 2 (NIV) I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone— for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peacefully and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.
5. Psalm 118: 25 (NIV) O LORD, save us; O LORD, grant us success.
6. 1 Thessalonian 5: 17 – 18 (NIV) Pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
7. 1 John 5: 14 – 15 (NIV) This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. 15 And if we know that he hears us — whatever we ask — we know that we have what we asked of him.
8. Hebrew 4: 16 (NIV) Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
9. 1 Timothy 2: 8 (NIV) I want men everywhere to lift up holy hands in prayer, without anger or disputing.
Conclusion
If you do not have a prayer journal as a Christian, you can start one today. Just pick up a piece of paper, focus and start writing down prayer requests and things you need God to do for you.
Then in a short while, get a notebook and transfer it into the notebook; there you go, you just started prayer journaling; it is that easy.
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