How to Start Prayer Journaling

Summary

In this video, Amber Rose, also known as 'The Religious Hippie,' provides a guide on how to start prayer journaling. She explains the personal nature of prayer journals and shares her own approach, including tips on supplies, setting the right mindset, and structuring entries. Amber emphasizes the importance of thanksgiving, heartfelt conversations with God, and prayer intentions. She also highlights the power of prayer journaling for spiritual growth, offering advice on how to stay consistent and connected to faith. Ultimately, she encourages viewers to make prayer journaling a personal and meaningful practice.

Takeaways

• 😀 Prayer journaling is a personal record of conversations with God, helping individuals keep track of their prayers and God's responses.
• 😀 The main reason to prayer journal is to stay focused during prayer and to document your spiritual journey, emotions, struggles, and gratitude.
• 😀 A prayer journal allows you to revisit past conversations with God, helping you recognize His answers and stay connected to your faith.
• 😀 Prayer journaling can help with focus during prayer, especially if you easily get distracted. It can create a more intimate space for communication with God.
• 😀 Many saints, including St. Therese of Lisieux and St. Augustine, kept prayer journals that offer insight into their struggles, which can inspire and support others.
• 😀 The first step in prayer journaling is to ask the Holy Spirit to open your heart, mind, and eyes to God's will before writing.
• 😀 Choose a prayer journal that you love, as you are more likely to consistently use it if you feel connected to it, whether it’s due to its design or structure.
• 😀 Using different colored pens for various parts of your journaling (e.g., thanksgiving prayers, personal conversations with God, prayer intentions) can make the process more meaningful.
• 😀 It's important to be honest and open with God, writing down all your emotions, struggles, achievements, and disappointments, without holding anything back.
• 😀 Prayer intentions should be written down to remember who and what you're praying for, helping you stay consistent in your prayer life and see how prayers evolve over time.

Q & A

Why is prayer journaling important, according to Amber?

Prayer journaling is important because it serves as a personal record of conversations with God, helping individuals reflect on their spiritual journey. It allows people to track answered prayers, stay focused during prayer, and communicate their struggles and emotions with God.

What are the main benefits of prayer journaling?

The main benefits of prayer journaling include maintaining a focused communication with God, documenting conversations and prayers, reflecting on how God impacts your life, and having a place to vent emotions and struggles. It also helps in building a closer relationship with God by fostering open communication.

What personal challenge does Amber face when praying, and how does prayer journaling help with it?

Amber struggles with staying focused during prayer, especially during mass. Prayer journaling helps her maintain focus by giving her a structured way to communicate with God, preventing distractions and allowing her to stay centered during her prayers.

How does prayer journaling help Amber with her struggles in her faith life?

Prayer journaling has helped Amber by providing an outlet for her emotions and struggles, allowing her to process her feelings, voice her concerns, and entrust them to God. It helps her find peace and build trust in God, especially when she has struggled with trusting Him in the past.

What is the significance of choosing a journal that you love for prayer journaling?

Choosing a prayer journal that you love can enhance consistency in journaling. If the journal is visually appealing and feels meaningful, it motivates individuals to use it regularly, making it more likely they will maintain the practice of prayer journaling.

What should you do before starting your prayer journaling session?

Before starting to write in your prayer journal, it is recommended to ask the Holy Spirit to open your mind, eyes, and heart to the truth, guiding you to understand God's will and communicate effectively with Him.

What are the different sections Amber includes in her prayer journal?

Amber includes several sections in her prayer journal: thanksgiving prayers (expressing gratitude for blessings), conversations with God (detailing struggles, emotions, and thoughts), prayer intentions (prayers for others and specific needs), and final thanksgiving prayers.

Why does Amber use different colored pens for different parts of her prayer journal?

Amber uses different colored pens to visually separate sections in her prayer journal. For example, she uses an orange pen for thanksgiving prayers, a blue pen for conversations with God, and bright colors like pink or green for prayer intentions. This helps her stay organized and makes the journal more engaging.

What does Amber suggest doing when struggling with writing or emotions in prayer journaling?

Amber suggests writing down everything, even if it seems difficult. She emphasizes that while God knows everything, writing out struggles and emotions in the prayer journal allows individuals to release their feelings and put their concerns into God's hands, providing a sense of peace.

Where does Amber prefer to do her prayer journaling, and why?

Amber prefers to do her prayer journaling during adoration, as she finds it to be a quiet and peaceful setting where her mind can focus fully on her prayers. However, she notes that prayer journaling can be done anywhere, at any time.