February 5, 2019 ● 19-11
Ex. 17:14: Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write this in a book as a memorial and recite it to Joshua, that I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven.”
Ex. 34:27: Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write down these words, for in accordance with these words I have made a covenant with you and with Israel.”
Ecc. 12:10: The Preacher ought to find delightful words and to write words of truth correctly.
Years ago I was introduced to the spiritual discipline of journaling. Journaling is simply reading a passage of Scripture and writing down what thoughts you have about that particular verse. Currently I am journaling through Psalms, and here is my journal entry for today:
Psalms 138:4-8
v. 6: For though the Lord is exalted, yet He regards the lowly, but the haughty He knows from afar. The “lowly” are those who are humble and are repentant. The “haughty” are those who don’t feel the need to repent and/or humble themselves before God. God does regard the lowly, if He didn’t then no one would be saved. Praise the Lord He has regard for those who repent, for those who come before Him to confess their sins and seek forgiveness. God is the God of creation and salvation, He is God and there are no others. And yet God is mindful and regards those who seek Him for forgiveness and salvation! Praise the Lord for His compassion and forgiveness.
I have journal entries that are short, others are long. Many of them, most of them, are nothing profound, but what God has impressed on my heart to write. I have used journal entries in sermons and Sunday School lessons and even to challenge and encourage the church.
Journaling as a spiritual disciple is helpful in many ways:
- It personalizes the Word of God, it helps me focus on how a particular verse of Scripture impacts my life.
- It internalizes the Word of God. Through journaling I am writing down God’s Word as a way to remember it.
- It memorializes the Word of God. What you write down, whether in a hand-written journal or a typed journal, is written down for later use; it becomes a record of how God’s Word is impacting your life.
My journal for the Book of Psalms is currently at forty-five pages. I don’t handwrite my journal, I type it out. I have found it is easier for me to type and think at the same time, but that’s just me. It really doesn’t matter what format you use and how short or long your journal entries are. What is important is that you are thinking about and writing down how God’s Word is impacting your life.
I want to encourage you to let the Word of God equip you with the spiritual discipline of journaling. Simply pray that God will develop that spiritual discipline in your life, begin simply with a sentence or two based on a particular verse of Scripture. You will be amazed how powerful this spiritual discipline is in helping you grow in your walk with the Lord.