Verse: ‘I call on you, my God, for you will answer me; turn your ear to me and hear my prayer’, (Psalm 17:6).
There is an almost unlimited number of ways to pray, some of my favourite methods have been covered before on this blog, one of these methods is something that was completely new to me. It was something that I thought I would at first struggle with but, in fact, thoroughly enjoyed. I am talking about the spiritual practice of keeping a prayer journal. There are a variety of different methods with which to conduct a prayer journal. The way that I found was best was to keep it in a similar way to a gratitude journal or diary. There is something so beautiful in thanking God for our blessings, even on the most testing and tiring of days.
I try to find things to thank Him for and then reflect on things I need to work on or perhaps vices which I have noticed myself falling into, asking God for help and faith in correcting these failings in the future. At the end of each day, either in the evening or early night, I sit for a few minutes and do a miniature version of the prayer of the Daily Examen. I then pick one blessing and one vice or error made that day and write them down in the form of a simple prayer. It may be helpful to add a date or use a diary so you can look back and see how you have progressed or grown in your faith and as a human being. I think that this is an important distinction between keeping a journal and other prayer practices which are similar such as impermeant methods of writing and burning for example. It is important to keep it and reflect on it as you go along.
Using a prayer diary or journal as a practical form of prayer can also be greatly beneficial for some practitioners. I have found it useful in the past to simply write prayers down on the pages of my journal and then once I have reread them sit in quiet contemplation waiting for the Spirit to reveal something to me. Once I have an answer – not necessarily the one I want – I can then move onto another prayer and so on and so on. I find this method effective as all too often we can stumble over the right words or get caught up in our thoughts when we try and say a prayer. It is much easier to simply write whatever prayer or request or concern comes to mind and then read it after it is written. I think this method is also useful as it allows us to sit and do something whilst we pray, praying can seem tedious if we simple try and sit still for long periods of time, this method allows you to engage multiple parts of your brain and also keeps you active as you are moving while you write.
I’ve struggled with prayer over the years, and then learned to reframe it. The journal is something I work on. I like the idea of the gratitde model. It is good to retrun to the basics. Thank you for this.