Rachel McPherson is an East Coast soul living in the Midwest. She loves writing, photography and spending quality time with friends.
Dear God,
Thank You for this beautiful day and for my amazing family. Oh, I forgot to call my mother today. Well, I could call her tomorrow during lunch. Oh wait, I almost forgot. I’m going out to lunch with Kristen tomorrow. Did I tell her I was meeting her at Chipotle or at Panera? I’ll text her quickly to find out.
Unfortunately, this is how many of my prayers used to sound. It has always been hard for me to practice the spiritual discipline of prayer. Many times my mind wanders, even though my intentions are to spend quiet time with God. With prayer time always competing with my mental list of things to do and the distractions around me, it was important to find a way to focus during prayer.
My junior year of high school, I decided to start a prayer journal and discovered that writing out my prayers did more than just keep me focused. As journaling my prayers became a habit, I noticed I was spending more quality time alone with God than I ever had before. I also realized writing down prayer requests for the specific needs of others helped me to remember the people I was praying for throughout my day.
And maybe the most powerful surprise—I began seeing answers to prayers I never would’ve noticed. I could look back in my prayer journal a week, a month or a year and see how God had brought me through a tough time, or how He had worked in the life of a friend for whom I’d been praying.
I’ve kept every prayer journal I’ve ever written in. It’s amazing to look back at prayers I wrote in high school and college and see how God has worked in my life and in the lives of people around me. By starting to journal my prayers, I was able to have a personal conversation with God every day, without getting distracted.
Ready, Get Set, PRAY!
If you’re already journaling, I’d love to hear about your experience. What have you seen God do in your life? What prayers has He answered? If you’ve never had a prayer journal but want to start, here are some tips:
1. Get a notebook. The color and size aren’t important—get whatever kind you want. If you’re an artist, get a drawing notebook, so you can make art a part of your prayer time.
2. Establish prayer steps to follow. Write these steps in the front of your journal. Here’s a suggested four-step prayer strategy:
Thanks: Share with God what you’re thankful for.
My community: Pray for the people you’re in community with—family, friends, neighbors and the world.
My requests: Bring your concerns and worries before God.
Praise: Praise Him! For a great example, read some of David’s psalms.
3.Find a place. Select a special place to meet with God each day. Choose a place with the least amount of distractions.
4.Look back. After a few weeks, look back at what you’ve written, and see how God is answering your prayers!
Rachel McPherson is an East Coast soul living in the Midwest. She loves writing, photography and spending quality time with friends.