A Joyride in a Journal by Brenda Leyland

"I've always been a journal keeper. I've always

tried to write about how I'm experiencing life,

and my feelings and thoughts."

Sue Monk Kidd

My journals are 'sacred' pieces of myself penned on paper. I think best with a pen in my hand, and journaling has always felt like that 'meant to be' place for writing out what's on my mind and heart.

In the photo above, what you see is the wildflower-sprigged cover of my current journal—Volume 199. I know, it's hard to believe I've 'felled' that many trees and filled that many notebooks. But it's been nearly forty years. And yes, if you're wondering, I still have every volume—all neatly stored in my study closet in seven banker's file boxes. If I had shelf space, I'd set out the most recent volumes and dip into them more often. My later volumes are a lot more fun to reread than the early ones. Simply because I'm a better writer, and I'm a lot more playful and creative in decorating my pages (stickers, leaves, calligraphy, sketches, etc.). Plus, I've gleaned a host of ideas from other writers of what I could explore on paper. I'm much more verbose at this stage of life (perhaps I have just become more opinionated, haha, and so my diaries hear about it). I fill about four or five notebooks a year.

How It All Began

It all began many years ago when I discovered Lucy Maud Montgomery's published journals in the 1980s. I felt I'd unearthed a treasure. By then, I was a devoted fan of her novels and poetry, and I gobbled up anything I could find about her life and work. She was my inspiration for finding the beauty in life and writing about it. I took notes. And paid attention to what made her journals interesting for me to read. She shared so many aspects of her life - growing up in her grandmother's home, her involvement in her community on Prince Edward Island, her friendships and amusements, what she read, what she wrote, the joy she took in the seasons, sunsets and flowers, not to mention kitty cats. She shared her woes and mental sufferings... along with her many joys and pleasures.

In my own youth and early adulthood, I had an odd assortment of notebooks for things I wanted to keep or remember. It was all a bit haphazard. Boxes of bits and pieces easily go astray—and sometimes they did disappear. But, since that day I opened a floral clothbound notebook and wrote the date across the first page—January 1, 1987—I have pretty much been dedicated to the art and discipline of writing in my journals. And except for the occasional season throughout the years, for the most part, it's been a daily part of my life.

Discovering What Worked Best

I eventually learned that it was best for my brain and personality to keep everything in a single journal rather than keeping various topical notebooks. Keeping more than one meant I was forever looking for the one I wanted. It didn't help me be organized; it just made me irritated. My journals are a motley collection in size, pattern, and style. I eventually decided against coil-bound notebooks—how would I label the spine with volume numbers and range of dates? My most recent favourite style of notebook is one put out by Nota (I find it at Indigo). It has an open spine exposing the decorative 'Coptic-stitch binding', which I really like, the spine of books usually being hidden by the cover. The pages easily lay open while I'm writing, and when it's full, its spine makes for easy labeling.

What's In Them

My journals hold all manner of information. Bits of diary—which can include tracking the weather or moon patterns, how well I slept, some to-do lists, what we're up to for the day. I often chat to myself about the books I'm reading, jotting down lines I want to remember. As well as trying to peg down why I like a certain book and not another. (Which helps when I need to write a book review). I write about what's going on in my inner life, emotionally or spiritually. I'm often writing out Bible verses that comfort, encourage, and nourish, along with prayers and gratitude reports. My journal is quite often my first-place dump for ideas—or for writing down a perfect opening line that appears out of the blue—which can often end up in a blog post and other writing.

And then, like LMM, there are all those beautiful moments in life that I don't want to forget. Those tiny moments that make a day suddenly feel alive with hope, even when the world is wildly insane. You know those glorious moments, when your heart zings with joy as you stand and watch a rainbow form after a summer shower. Or, when you sit in the garden where the air is sweet with perfume and the birds chatter companionably, and our neighbourly Orange Kitty wanders in for a quick visit and a quiet snooze in the shrubbery. Where you are just glad, glad, glad to be alive on God's green earth. Descriptions of this sort written in my journal will often nose their way into my blog posts.

Though my journals are not works of art, per se, they do resemble my personality and nature. My soul sits there on the pages—I recognize her amongst the words. Sometimes my handwriting is neat, other times not so much. Sometimes my soul is bright with hope and sunshine, other times she can grouse with the best worst of 'em. These journals are scribbled layers of thoughts, feelings, and impressions—the extraordinary moments mixed in with ordinary ones. Looking back, in many ways I wish I could have written a neater story within these pages. But a journal, I believe, is meant to house what bubbles up, unedited, our thoughts and ideas untangling as we "scratch them out on paper" (Sarah Clarkson, p. 86, Reclaiming Quiet).

Three Journal Side Trips

As I already mentioned earlier, a single journal with many volumes has companioned me over the years. But there have been short seasons when I did keep a separate notebook for a specific purpose. My Gratitude Journals in half size notebooks, for one. Sarah Ban Breathnach's book Simple Abundance: A Daybook of Comfort and Joy (her January 14th entry) was my inspirational first intro to such a lovely exercise. It helped me to establish the lifelong habit of living a life in gratitude. I think there are three such notebooks on my bookshelf; every once in a while I revisit those old lists from another life time.

And then there was the season when I discovered Julia Cameron's ritual of Morning Pages. It took some years to recognize that this could be something to use when I needed to blow off steam, vent hidden frustrations, anger, and pent-up pain (all part of pouring it out to the Lord in three pages). I have never wanted my ‘insane’ ravings and laments to be a permanent part of my journals. For I never wanted to revisit those traumatized moments, not did I ever want someone to stumble upon them. So, I used up old scribblers and notebooks as temporary depositories where I wrote it all out…down to the last tiny ‘huff and puff’ of the abating squall. I don't reread them—the scribblings are destroyed, either at that point or when a notebook is full. And should there come out of those ramblings a few lines worth keeping, those are transferred into my regular journal. Morning Pages has been such a helpful tool for releasing brewing emotion and pain. In writing it all out in this safe place, I'd feel a lightness in the emptying process. I felt heard. I felt release. I slept better. Most importantly, I felt peace in my heart.

Most recently, since January 1, 2022, I have been keeping a small Five-Year Commonplace Diary. Which was inspired by author Austin Kleon who uses this diary to jot a favourite line he comes across in a day. This year I started Year Five, and by the time I write my last quote on December 31st, I will have curated a collection of 1825 quotations—how is that for one tiny diary. What I have found as I watch the pages fill with quotes over the weeks, months, and now years, I often can identify my frame of mind and what might have been going on in my life or in the world at large. So in reality, it's a journal that has tracked my life in quotations.

I have loved writing in my journals. It has been a wondrous experience. A true delight. It's one of those 'hobbies' I have never grown tired of—it's right up there with reading. I have never felt pressured to write in them. I do it because I want to and look forward to opening each day's fresh blank page. It's been a joyride in a journal. I have no plans to stop. 

Brenda writes from her perch by the study window that overlooks her garden and the birds. You can find her writing on her blog It's A Beautiful Life. She's also on Facebook and Instagram (under Bren Leyland).

 

  

 

Journaling by Sandra Rafuse

 

When I first read January's prompt for 2026, my heart skipped a beat. "Do you journal?" it asked. I had tried journaling a few times in a notebook with a pen but I couldn't make it flow. I couldn't find a rhythm to it and I wasn't satisfied with the words I was writing. I had to admit I didn't journal.

When the January blogs started coming in, I was learning so much more about journaling than I'd ever known before: what it was, the purposes it served, the many different methods of doing it. Everyone was sharing so much information and it was all so interesting to read. . .there were so many different ideas! When Susan Barclay's blog, "Confessions of a Former Journalist" came out, I have to admit I gave a huge sigh of relief after reading she was no longer journaling. I could relate to the reasons she spoke of for deciding to stop keeping a journal. Her words made me feel that it was alright to not to be journaling at this time. Maybe another time would work and that would be good.

Then Mary Folkerts's blog "Journaling for My Heart" was published and her words opened up my eyes to possibilities I hadn't thought of. Mary said, "The recording of my life has taken the form of calendars, to-do lists, photo galleries on my phone or laptop, and writing articles. These, too, are journals." Photo galleries? They are journals? I thought of the collages I had started putting together a few years ago. And at that moment, I realized for the first time, that the collages told a story. They were memories of a special time or a special place, or a special occasion. The photo of the collage at the top of this page is the story of my brother Greg's love of old cars. He goes to antique car shows as often as he can and sometimes has someone take a picture of himself standing beside some of his favourite cars. I am sure I could have him send me several more pictures, enough to make a second collage of cars for him.

I sent a collage to my niece's daughter when she was six years old. Pictures of the day she went into the hospital to get her tonsils taken out. Pictures of the preparation for the surgery and then pictures of her recovery afterwards. A single page full of memories to look at in the years to come. And one of my favourite collages of all is the one I put together of three of my nieces, a nephew, and our two sons posing with some of fish they had caught in their younger years. Well, ok, maybe their dad had caught them and helped pull them in, but there they stood with their fish, so happy and excited and proud. Today they all have the same collage to bring out and look at and they can remember the happiness they felt! There's lots for them to talk about while looking at those pictures.

Hey! I realize, according to some of the blogs I've read so far this month, that I'm journaling! I thought I wasn't. But I am! I turn my head and I see a pile of notebooks lying in a basket beside my bookcase. I look at the titles and I remember what was written in them; famous quotes, favourite newspaper clippings; paragraphs from books that spoke to me of love and courage and danger and happiness and God and how he is always in our lives taking care of us; scriptures to stand on; lessons from some pastors' sermons, more famous quotes; etc., etc. Journals. They are journals. I thought I'd stopped working on them, but I've been writing them all along.

While I am delighted to know that there are so many different ways that we can journal, I do want to start again with notebook and pen. I'm looking forward to it.

 

Sandra Rafuse lives in the small town of Rockglen, Saskatchewan, with her husband, Bob, a Gordon Setter named Sadie, and a Peregrine falcon named Peet. She is a retired teacher and an amateur writer and is thoroughly enjoying having the opportunity to share what God is teaching her through her life experiences.

 

 

On Journaling by Brenda J Wood

Somewhere in the early seventies, I heard that journaling helped a person overcome abuse and I thought, that is for me! I gathered up notebooks and several pens. Then I warned my family never to touch those scribblers. I left them in plain view on the coffee table and trusted they'd never open them. That’s many years and sixty plus notebooks ago.

This is what I have learned.

Just get all your thoughts out of you and onto the page; everything from joys to jealous and juicy gossip. Getting words down on the page somehow makes the life they represent more manageable. Some people like to organize their overwhelming thoughts. I just pour mine out and deal with them face-to-face.

Who else is better qualified?

Those sentences help you understand the real you. There is no pretense when you face your regrets and reality.

Be a Velveteen Rabbit. Find that true happiness means accepting yourself as who you really are. Of course, by necessity, we write the good, the bad, and the ugly. How do we experience joy if we haven’t experienced its opposite?

Write on and expose your hidden attitudes and prejudice and deal them a heavy blow of correction.

The lessons you learn? Invaluable. Let your words lead you—through loneliness, leisure and life in general.

J - just

O - organize

U - understand

R - be real, record

N - necessary

A - attitudes and

L - life lessons

You might never write a best seller or publish your memoir, but your journals are a fine second.

Brenda J Wood has authored more than fifty books. She is a seasoned motivational speaker, who declares the Word of God with wisdom, humour, and common sense.

Journaling for My Heart by Mary Folkerts

 

I pulled a dusty old box from the top shelf in my closet, and immediately, I was transported back to elementary and junior high school. Inside were stacks of letters and tiny pieces of paper filled with the angsty words of teenage girls, passing notes in class. I could spend hours shaking out the dust, opening folded paper and remembering young Mary and her friends. It takes me back to the days that formed me; the bad, the good, the embarrassing and the painful. I am no longer that girl, but it was who I once was.

I’m not sure why I have kept that box of memories, and maybe it’s time to trash it. Or perhaps I’ll leave it for my kids to have a chuckle over someday. The same goes for old notebooks filled with journal entries I started, with good intentions to document my days. My mom faithfully kept a diary, and I thought it was a wonderful idea. Inevitably, there were many stops and starts over the years, but I do find it fascinating to read the entries. For me, it’s like looking through old photo albums, remembering my childhood.

In my adult years, I have been much less faithful about keeping a daily physical journal. The recording of my life has taken the form of calendars, to-do lists, photo galleries on my phone or laptop, and writing articles. These, too, are journals in their own right, returning us to the memories of yesteryear.

Whatever form the documentation of our lives takes, I think it’s important for our legacy and for our own remembering. I have often looked back over something I have written and, with greater clarity, can see how God has worked in my life to grow and change me. There have also been many times when I have needed to reread words to minister afresh to my own heart.

Untangling feelings onto paper, even in haphazard sentences, frees the mind to think more clearly about a situation.

That’s the thing about words—they are perennial. Times may change, cultural norms may shift, but truths don’t change. Journaling our lives, in whatever form that takes, is a life-giving practice. Untangling feelings onto paper, even in haphazard sentences, frees the mind to think more clearly about a situation. And reading back those thoughts years later, disorganized as they may be, can bring a realization of how God works change and growth in us.

And even when not journaling, our writer words are often written to our own hearts, for we, the sick, know well the Cure. We write from our pain as our journals can confirm.


Physician, heal thyself!
taunts at the obvious—
fissures splayed
wide, pinned
like a specimen.
Heads nodding,
prodding,
pointing out the fault
line—
there, see?
But never denied,
each spoon of medicine
dolled out,
two taken in turn.
For the sick
know well the
cure.

Mary Folkerts is mom to four kids and wife to a farmer, living on the southern prairies of Alberta, where the skies are large and the sunsets stunning. She is a member of Proverbs 31 Ministries' COMPEL Writers Training, involved in church ministries and music. Mary’s blog aims to encourage and inspire women and advocate for those with Down Syndrome, as their youngest child introduced them to this extraordinary new world. For more inspiration, check out Joy in the Small Things https://maryfolkerts.com/ or connect on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/maryfolkerts/

How Bullet Journaling Organized My Life by Dana-Lyn Phillips

Last year my best friend sent me a text asking if I would like to begin bullet journaling with her. I didn’t have a clue what she was talking about, but she knew me so well that when she learned of this increasingly popular method of containing our fleeting, perimenopausal, thoughts in one place, she knew it was something that would interest me.

I immediately began researching everything I could about Bullet Journaling. I even purchased a book titled “The Bullet Journal Method: Track the Past, Order the Present, Design the Future” written by Ryder Carroll, the creator of the Bullet Journal method.

I have always been a ‘Type A’ personality that appreciates (expects) organization and to-do lists. In fact, I may be known for having lists of lists. (Ok, so maybe that’s a bit embarrassing to admit.) Anyway, the point is, the more I learned about this style of organizing, the more excited I became.

In his book, Ryder talks about how he came to develop this system of journaling and how it is a cross between a planner, diary, notebook, to-do-list, and sketchbook. Every person will build their bullet journal differently so it meets their own needs. It is unique. Someone else’s will not serve you, and yours will not serve someone else, but therein lies the beauty of the system because it is exactly what you need. No more, no less.

Some people choose to add an element of design into their pages which can render some journals beautiful pieces of art. Others may tend towards a strict white paper, black pen approach which still echoes beauty in its simplicity and form. Before I put pen to paper in my first journal, I sat and contemplated how I should go about filling it. I reflected on the types of pages I had read about, and chose the ones I thought might best help me to keep track of…absolutely everything. I started with my four most important pages.

My “Future Log” documents my upcoming six months so I can quickly jot down important things that need to take place. Things such as remembering to book a tire change or to get quotes on new insurance policies.

My “Monthly Log” clearly lays out a month, by date, with all of the important appointments or activities. The facing page allows me to make a list of tasks I need to complete that month.

My “Daily Log” is a two-page spread divided into eight sections. This is where I clearly lay out each week from Monday to Sunday and includes a section for “Notes” which can be anything I need to remember for that week that may not take place on a certain day. It could also be something I need to remember to move to next week once I create next week's log.

Lastly is my “Tracking Chart” where I track important daily tasks for the month. Things like meeting my water consumption goals for the day, whether I exercised, took supplements, did my devotions, etc.

In addition to these four must-have pages, I have also been known to include pages that track important birthdays, house projects, meal prep and shopping lists, vacation plans, writing topics, weight loss, books I’m reading, and health changes.

What I love most about the Bullet Journal method, is that all of my lists have a home in one place. There are no scraps of paper floating around and getting misplaced. There’s also no longer a need for separate notebooks for work and personal tasks. Everything fits together in a size I can throw in my purse and take with me wherever I go.

It’s been less than a year and I am already on my third Bullet Journal. Each one has been tweaked along the way as I have added or removed things based on their effectiveness. I would like to encourage you as you strive to get organized in 2026 to find, and use, whatever system works best for you. Don’t be scared to try something new, especially if the same old, same old, is no longer working.

In his book, Ryder Carroll says “We breathe life into our thoughts by committing them to paper.” What a beautiful quote, especially for an audience of writers. I would like to encourage you to keep this in mind as you write, but also as you get organized. Happy planning, everyone.

 

Dana-Lyn is a wife, and mother to teenage boys as well as a 14 year old cava-poo named Hockley. She is passionate about encouraging Christian women in their faith and is stepping into her mid-life "calling" as a writer. Her happy place consists of a comfy chair, a great book, a hot cup of coffee and a chocolate…or three! You can read more of her work at https://plansfargreater.substack.com

Confessions of a Former Journalist by Susan Barclay

 

I guess I’m the first in this month’s series of posts to admit that I’m a former journalist, someone who used to keep a journal or diary. I received my first diary when I was about 8 or 9 years old, a green 5-year hardback with gold edges and a golden key and lock. I didn’t write in it much and not much is worth rereading. In high school I developed more of a journaling habit, encouraged by teachers who required us to keep them and which we wrote in school notebooks with lined paper.

I continued to maintain a regular journal through university and from time to time through my working, married, and parenting years. As others have said, it was a place to document and process key events in my life.

It was probably five years ago that I threw in the towel on keeping a journal.

Why?

Well, for one reason, sacrifice. I became a caregiver to my elderly mother as we brought her into our home after a fall. Although I certainly had more to write about and ponder, my time was no longer my own. I had to cater to my mother's needs, which involved a lot of jumping up and down, a variety of appointments, and was physically and mentally exhausting. I still had to keep up with part-time work (until I retired in June 2024) and the chores involved in running a home. I didn’t, and still don’t, have the bandwidth to journal as this caregiving journey continues.

I was tired of playing catch-up, which I had done throughout the years. Sometimes I’d be catching up on months-worth of life. It got to the point where I didn’t feel like doing that anymore. It was just too much.

There were other things I deemed more important than journaling. Things like administering online support groups, participating in two in-person book clubs, and helping to run our church’s 55+ group. In other words, connecting with people rather than paper. (Sometimes you can do both, as with writing for this blog!) And, of course, it’s also critical to maintain spiritual disciplines and that daily connection with God.

I had hoped, or thought, that this month’s blog challenge might lead me to resume journaling. As much as I’ve enjoyed reading the posts so far, it has not had that result. I have, however, been able to keep up with a couple of other daily activities, including Nicky and Pippa Gumbel’s 365-day express Bible plan on YouVersion and reading the daily “devotional,” Your 100 Day Prayer: The Transforming Power of Actively Waiting on God (John I. Snyder), and writing a prayer response. This is perhaps a variation on journaling.

Ironically, even as I gave up on keeping a daily life record, my husband started writing one. His entries are much as others have described, involving lament and reflection followed by praise. Our son has been keeping a journal for over a year now, though I don’t know anything about its contents or his process, other than he writes it on his laptop just like his dad.

I’ve rarely reviewed anything I’ve previously written and what happens to my existing journals when I’m gone does concern me. Someone mentioned leaving instructions for them to be burned unread; my “worry” is that such instructions may be ignored. Sometimes you write things that may be hurtful to others. Maybe it would be better to dispose of one’s journals before they can be read.

For me, the value of journaling is in the processing of things you’re going through. But life is also about living and I have found that journaling takes time away from that. Especially when time is so precious and "me-time" so limited.

When caregiving ends, I may regret not having kept a journal these last several years (after all, it would have provided much fodder for other writing, memoir in particular). I do hope to pick it up again if and when I’m not so weighed down. In the meantime, I’m happy to be writing anything at all.

If like me, you’ve given up journaling because life is just too busy to write about it, let’s trust and believe that this season too shall pass. And if not, remember, our stories are written in His book. Our lives matter whether or not they are written about anywhere else. We are part of history (His story) and we make a difference to the people around us. That is enough.

__________________________

For more about Susan and her writing, please visit www.susan-barclay.blogspot.com

From Generation to Generation by Alan Anderson

 
(Out of respect for my son and daughter-in-law, I cannot name or show a photo of my granddaughter.)

"Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord,

the fruit of the womb a reward."—Psalm 127:3

"Grandchildren are the crown of the aged,

and the glory of children is their fathers."—Proverbs 17:6

Family Closeness

One of my sons and his family live about one hour away from my wife, Terry, and me. He and his wife have one daughter. We enjoy a close relationship with them.

My granddaughter and I have fun being together. One thing we do is tell dad jokes. I tell dad jokes, and she rolls her eyes as her reaction to the jokes. Every time I am with her, I bring dad jokes; she braces herself and gets ready with her eye rolls.

My granddaughter is a writer in the making. She is a creative child and has tremendous self-awareness for her young age. Often when we get together, she will inform Terry and me of a song she has written or a story she has read or is writing. What a thrill it is to be welcomed into the mind and heart of a young creative.

Joint Journaling

A new writing project I am excited about is one where I will step up my journaling in 2026 for a special reason. If it all works out, I will be journaling with my ten-year-old granddaughter. The idea is for us to have a journal each with which we will make entries in. I don’t want to make it complicated for her, but here, in point form, is what I have in mind.

1. We each have a journal to write in. When something interesting in life happens, we write it in our journals.

2. When we visit each other, we exchange journals. We then make an interesting entry in each other’s journal.

3. At our next visit, we exchange journals again and repeat #2.

4. A goal is for us to continue our journal entries throughout the years.

5. If this idea works, we will read each other’s entries as if we are chatting with each other.

6. In time, my granddaughter will have a written record of our lives together. When I am in heaven, she will have memories to hold.

From Generation to Generation

I am gleaning a lot of great ideas for our journal while reading the posts for this month. Our blog contributors add so much to help me in my calling as a writer. I know my journaling efforts will be even more fun and fulfilling from their insights.

Both of my grandmothers died before I was born. My grandfathers died when I was a young boy. Through the years I have thought of what it might have been like if I had known my grandparents.

I would like my grandchildren to have wonderful memories of their grandparents. My youngest granddaughter is the grandchild who resonates most with me as a writer. Her young age is something I keep in mind; therefore, we will go slow as we begin our journal together. I will continue to encourage her throughout her young writer years. I hope and pray she will continue in our generational love of words.

When my days as a writer are over, and I lay my pen aside, I pray my granddaughter will see through our journals that my love for her abides.

 

Alan lives in a small village called Deroche, British Columbia, with his wife, Terry, and their poodle, Charlie. He enjoys walking on the dike near his home, with trees all around and where he finds inspiration to write. He has occasionally written articles for FellowScript Magazine and is a regular contributor to the InScribe Christian Writers’ Fellowship blog. Alan’s website and blog is https://scarredjoy.ca.

Beyond "Dear Diary" by Steph Beth Nickel

Photo Credit: Desk Smartphone Iphone - Free photo on Pixabay

"Rambling until I stumble across truth."

This is how I’ve often referred to my “Dear Diary” type journaling, and it has countless benefits, among them . . .

1. Priming the pump so we can get into the flow of writing words meant to be shared with others.
2. Discovering what’s truly on our minds and in our hearts.
3. Writing without judgment. The page is a great place to be honest with ourselves.

Currently, I’m not journaling in this way, but I may do so again in the days ahead.

The closest I’ve come recently is based on the one-line-a-day journal concept. I use a blank journal to summarize the highlights of each day, mostly in incomplete sentences. I intend to use the same journal for 3-5 years.

While we can begin again any day, for many people, January 1 feels like a brand-new start. This is the case with me. I love purchasing a new planner and at least one new journal.

This month, instead of purchasing a multi-subject notebook to keep track of what stands out to me in the various devotional materials I’m using, I purchased the same notebook in a variety of colours. I use pens of corresponding colours to make notes in each of them.

I do love beautiful journals and planners, especially those that are leatherbound and contain handmade paper, and would buy a plethora of them, except . . . I have several that still have available space. But because I want to be able to look at a journal and know exactly what’s inside, I purchased the aforementioned 50-cent notebooks.

While it may sound strange to many of you, I must give myself permission to do a number of things in order to optimize my planners and journals.

Among them, I must remember . . .

1. My handwriting doesn’t have to be perfect—not even in a leather-bound journal.
2. Even if a notebook or journal contains a number of different types of entries (sermon notes, random thoughts, lists, etc.), I can assign a specific topic to the remaining blank pages and go from there.
3. I can toss those that are full, or almost full, without rereading the entries. If the information was truly important, it would be recorded elsewhere or would be in my working memory.
4. Even if I’m going to get rid of my planner at the end of the year, it isn’t a waste to decorate it with stickers and washi tape as an expression of my creativity and to bring a smile to my face.
5. Like author Myquillyn Smith says in her book House Rules: How to Decorate for Every Home, Style, and Budget, it’s beneficial to “admire not acquire.” While she is applying this principle to decorating one’s home, I find it applies to every area of life. This is also the case when it comes to the beautiful journals some people create. I can admire these journals without taking the time to learn how to emulate these incredible results.

So, do you journal? If so, which type of journaling do you find most beneficial?

Steph Beth Nickel is the former Editor of FellowScript and the current InScribe Contest Coordinator. Steph is an editor and author and plans to relocate to Saskatchewan from Ontario to be close to family in 2027. (Headshot Photo Credit: Jaime Mellor Photography)

Journaling Through Pain to Peace ~ Valerie Ronald

 

Years ago, I stood to speak to my church family, feeling nervous and vulnerable yet certain I was doing what God wanted me to do.

“Pastor David has asked me to tell you how God’s faithfulness has brought me to where I can look back at recent challenging times in my life and see Him carrying me through. The best way I can tell you is by sharing excerpts from my journal.” I paused, looking out at familiar faces listening expectantly.

“My heart is in here.” I held up a worn, black spiral notebook.

"It contains pages smeared with tears˗˗sentences written black with anger˗˗many questions asked of God. And words of surrender when I came to the end of myself and God met me. There He gave me words from His journal, the Bible, to strengthen and encourage me. Words I read repeatedly, clinging to His promises when all else was crumbling around me.”

***

Throughout my life, journaling was a way for me to process difficulties and inner struggles. From an early age, writing was what I loved to do best. I filled notebooks with stories and descriptions, so it was natural to try to figure out my life by writing about it. When things were particularly difficult was when I relied most on journaling. It was the place where I could pour out my heart˗˗where I could honestly express my deepest struggles and emotions without being judged.

I never thought I would be brave enough to share publicly what I had written in private, however, when asked to tell some of my journey to my church family, God led me to my journal. As I prepared to speak, I asked God to show me which excerpts He wanted me to use. I felt like I was laying my heart bare for all to see, yet I had peace about it. I loved my church family. Many of them had loved and supported me through the intense trauma of the last few years. I knew I could trust them with aspects of my story I would not share with just anyone.

In the span of a few months, my children and I had been traumatized by my husband’s adulterous betrayal and desertion, and the diagnosis that I had non-Hodgkins lymphoma cancer. Our family struggled through emotional suffering, financial stress, and legal pressure. I had to try and be strong for my three children. I had to find ways to keep food on the table and the bills paid, as well as dealing with our brokenness. Often it was a matter of just putting one foot in front of the other, praying one prayer for help after the other, moment by moment.

During this time, my journal recorded my utter dependence on God. I needed Him so desperately. Even when I felt angry with what He was allowing to happen to me, He was my Rock. My meandering journal entries always came back to trusting in Him.

“How I need Jesus’ touch! Every day I search the Bible, hungry for reassurance that He knows what He is doing with the mess of my life˗˗needing to know, though all else is falling around me, He is still in control and has a purpose for these trials." 

I asked Him to teach me what He wanted me to learn. He gave me this. “The Lord may give you bread of adversity and water of affliction, but He who teaches you will no longer keep Himself out of sight, but with your own eyes you will see Him.” (Isa.30:20 NIV)  It is not things He wants me to know, it is a Person, Jesus Christ˗˗to see Him with my own spiritual eyes. He wants me to lean completely on Him and His faithful character; to trust when I am alone and empty, His love will fill me up.”

Regular journaling became a lifeline by helping me distill my thoughts and feelings so they made sense, expressing the essence of what was going on inside me. Writing caused me to slow down enough to attend to my inner being, helping me to reflect, contemplate, and more fully digest what I was experiencing. I also noticed a beneficial pattern in my journal entries. They often began with a rant of pain or anger over difficult circumstances, then as I sought God, the ranting became a prayer, informed by His Word and ending in gratitude. My journal functioned like a compass whose needle at first gyrated madly, then as the power of God steadied the needle, it pointed unerringly to ‘true north,’ the power of His Holy Spirit guiding and directing me.

By the time I shared my story with my church family, God was already at work releasing the log jam of problems damming my life river. Much of the dirt and debris had washed away in the cleansing flow of His Spirit and I looked forward to happier times.

Further entries in my journal recorded meeting and marrying my husband, a man of God and His Word, and going into remission from cancer, still holding 24 years later. My life is not perfect, but it is lived in perfect peace because of my beloved Savior. When I read back over my journal from those painful years, it is His love and grace which stands out. I have it in writing.

                                                                   

      

Valerie Ronald writes from an old roll top desk in Portage la Prairie, Manitoba, with her tortoiseshell cat for a muse. A graduate of Langara College School of Journalism, she writes devotionals, fiction, and inspirational prose. Her purpose in writing is to encourage others to grow in their spiritual walk.