A Bible and a journal- two of the most valuable tools I have used in my Christian walk. When I was a baby Christian I fell in love with the word of God. I kept coming across all these amazing nuggets of truth coming directly from Him who is called the Truth. I remember before I started reading the Bible I had a lot of pre-concieved notions about it that I just ran with. Some were accurate and others were just kinda from my own head. I have to admit that though I identified as a Christian before I read the Bible I really had kind of created my own god, and now that I look back at that, that's pretty terrifying!
But when I started reading the Bible it was like seeing in color for the first time. I remember being so enlightened with every book of the Bible I read that I couldn't wait to go to the store and find the cutest journal I could to start writing this stuff down. I actually still have the old spiral with those scriptures that I wrote down and my thoughts on them from way back then. I would journal about my experiences with sharing my new found faith with people. One scripture I remember that stood out to me that I wrote down in my journal was when Jesus said in Matthew 10:33, "But whoever denied Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven." I remember thinking, wow. Not too soon before that I was in my college classroom and the professor was so anti-Christian and he spoke so badly about it. And after he gave a lengthy talk on how horrible he thought Christianity was he asked, "so is anyone here a Christian?" Who was going to raise their hand after he bad mouthed Christianity so much? Anyone who did was only being set up to be made a mockery of. So, like a coward, I did not raise my hand. I felt like Peter afterward. Thankfully I got a chance to redeem myself (figuratively speaking because really Jesus had already done the true redeeming), and later in the semester I told a story that was somehow related to the discussion that testified of me being a Christian.
But after I really started delving into the word that scripture in Matthew became real to me.
So why did I use my journal so regularly during the early part of my Christian walk? It might have been because I was already used to taking notes because I was in college. I knew that when you write something down it would stick better. There was something methodic about writing down important things. It caused you to slow down and really pay attention to each word and its meaning as you wrote it. So I carried that same habit as I read the Bible.
Journaling also was a wonderful way to write out my feelings to the Lord. Journaling is such a great tool for expressing what is in the soul. Its a sacred place where its just you and the Lord.
When I was nearing the end of getting my bachelors degree in Philosophy I was pretty determined for a while before that to keep on going to school and studying philosophy in post-graduate school. As a side note philosophy is really the study of truth. And that's why I loved studying it so much. But when I found the Truth, Jesus Christ He gently led me out of the idea of going on to study philosophy. He told me, I am the the Truth, you don't need to look any further. So as sure as sure can be I determined to study the Bible from that time on and not go after the world's version of truth.
And now, 14 years later I can say that I still am in the habit of reading the Bible with a journal nearby. I love how He has answered my prayers and has given me His wisdom. Now my journaling includes much of the same as before but with a little more in depth study. I write down the scriptures, and then underneath I'll outline a cloud and inside that I'll write down my thoughts and how it applies to me and the world around me. Often I'll write down cross references and I get really geeked out when a beautiful nugget of wisdom comes directly from God through these cross reference scriptures. I love when the dots connect.
I love reading the Bible and I love journaling. When I pick out a journal I always look for something that is aesthetically pleasing as well as a spiral or wire bound. I've had journals in the past that were not spiral bound and they don't lay flat and the spine gets worn out.
If you are interested in any beautiful journals that are well-made check these out:
Pray. Wait. Trust. Journal Tuscan Journal Sunflower Journal
For any other journals, including Bible Study Journals and Prayer Journals go here: