I used to have trouble keeping up with my prayer life. I had a weak and inconsistent prayer life and I knew I wanted that to change. It was just so hard to remember to pray throughout the day or even just in the mornings and evenings.
Because of my struggles with prayer, I did my research and came across the idea of keeping a prayer journal.
A prayer journal is a journal dedicated to your prayers. Personally, I’ve found that keeping a prayer journal keeps me accountable and focused. It’s also allowed me to track my prayers.
I’ve been more consistent with praying daily and have grown in this area of my life.
Can you relate to my story? Do you also struggle with your prayer life? Do you find that it’s easier to write your prayers out?
If this is you, read on to learn more about how to create a prayer journal.
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What’s the purpose of prayer journals?
You may not be convinced a prayer journal is what you need to improve your prayer life.
Prayer journals aren’t for everyone. We’ve all wired differently and what may work for one person, doesn’t work for the next. And that’s okay.
If you enjoy writing and find it’s easier to journal your thoughts than “think out loud”, I think prayer journals may be the solution for you.
The purpose of prayer journals is to improve the consistency of your prayers. In scripture, the Apostle Paul tells us, “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 ESV).
Prayer is the will of God. He wants us to communicate with him!
How to Start a Prayer Journal
You’d like to start a prayer journal but you’re unsure how. Creating a prayer journal doesn’t have to be stressful. Here are 3 easy steps to starting a prayer journal.
#1 Buy a journal.
The first step is to buy a journal. This could be as simple as buying a regular, one-subject notebook.
Or it could be as grand as buying a nice floral journal. It doesn’t have to be fancy, but if you’d like it to be, that’s up to you.
There are also guided prayer journals you can buy if you’d like something more structured.
#2 Decorate and personalize your journal.
This step is optional, but if you’d like, you have the option of decorating and making your journal your own.
Some people like to add stickers to their journals, others enjoy adding tabs, and some add a letter to themselves at the beginning of their journal (stating why they’ve started this journal and what they hope to gain from it).
There are countless ways to decorate and personalize your journal.
#3 Start writing your prayers consistently.
Now that you have a journal and you’ve personalized it, it’s time to get down to business.
Start writing your prayers out! It really is that easy. Just write what comes to mind and be honest with God about where you’re at.
God wants to hear all about your life, your day, and what you’re going through. He cares. Simply write it all out to him.
Prayer Journal Template
If you don’t like having the freedom to do what you’d like with your prayer journal and need a little more direction, that’s completely understandable. Here’s a simple 6 step journal template you can use to make your prayer journal time richer.
Step 1: Read or listen to scripture.
First, take time to read or listen to scripture. A good resource I’d recommend if you’d like to listen to scripture is YouVersion. They also have an app you can download on your phone.
Taking the time to read scripture every day is important. It doesn’t have to be too long. It can be as simple as reading one chapter per day.
Step 2: Record what you’ve learned from this scripture.
After reading scripture, meditate on it for a bit.
Ask yourself questions like:
- What have I learned from this passage?
- How can I apply it in my life?
- Is there anything God is telling me through this passage?
After spending some time thinking about it, record it in your journal.
Step 3: Pray over scripture.
Once you’ve recorded what you’ve gotten from this scripture, pray over it.
Tell God how you’ve learned from his Word and ask him for help with applying it in your life. Just have a conversation with him about it.
Step 4: Give thanks to God.
Show gratitude to God for all the things he’s given you and for everything you’ve learned. There are so many things to be thankful for.
Here’s a short list to give you some ideas. I’m thankful for:
- Family
- Friends
- Health
- Stable finances
- Education
- Clean water
- Coffee
You get the picture. Give thanks to God every day for all the things in your life, big or small.
Step 5: Let your requests to God be known.
Life isn’t perfect. We all have our struggles and trials.
Believe it or not, God cares. Tell him about what you’re going through. Give your requests over to him. He will listen!
“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.” (Matthew 7:7 ESV).
Step 6: Pray for others.
Finally, pray for others in your life. It’s important we talk to God about the people that are in our lives and we ask that he intercede in their lives.
I’ve done this for the people in my life and believe me when I say he answers. I’ve seen him show up for some of the people I’ve prayed for. Keep praying and see God work in their life.
“Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” (James 5:16 NIV).
More Prayer Journal Ideas
Here are a few more prayer journal ideas.
Create a section for prayer requests.
Creating a section for prayer requests makes your journal organized and makes it easier for you to remember them.
Simply make a tab for a part of your journal where you take down the prayer requests of others. Once you’re ready to pray for these requests, turn to this section for reference.
Date your prayer entries.
Another simple idea is to remember to date your prayer entries. Doing this allows you to turn back to prayers in the past and see how God has shown up or answered them.
It’s nice to go back to prayers you’ve forgotten about and see how much you’ve grown and what God’s done since that time.
Use a guided prayer journal.
Finally, if you’d prefer to use a guided prayer journal, that’s an option as well. Guided prayer journals are laid out for you so you don’t have to worry about making one from scratch.
There are many options to choose from. This guided prayer journal is my favorite. It has journaling and reflection prompts, and scripture placed throughout.
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