Not long
ago, I passed a milestone marking 20 years since I began keeping a spiritual
journal. As I reread my first few entries, I was amazed I ever kept it up. But
now you couldn’t pay me to stop!
Here are
some benefits I have received from journaling: From life experiences, I see
that progress and failure are both part of the journey. I’m reminded of God’s
grace when I read how He helped me to find a solution to a major problem. I
gain insight from past struggles that help with issues I am currently facing.
And, most important, journaling shows me how God has been faithfully working in
my life.
Many of
the psalms are like a spiritual journal. They often record how God has helped
in times of testing. In Psalm 40, David writes: “I waited patiently for the
Lord; and He inclined to me, and heard my cry. He also brought me up out of a
horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and
established my steps” (vv.1-2). Later, David needed only to read that psalm to
be reminded of God’s faithful deliverance.
Journaling may be useful to you too. It can help you see more clearly what God is teaching you on life’s journey and cause you to reflect on God’s faithfulness.
brings hope for the future. (RBC)
