Journaling as Prayer

I’ve been reading Journaling as a Spiritual Practice: Encountering God Through Attentive Writing by Helen Cepero. Cepero offers journaling prompts that make writing prayer. I was drawn to this book because I’ve been a life-long journal-keeper; since the fifth grade, in fact! Lately, I have benefitted from guided journaling, and find responding to the questions posed to be thought-provoking. I’ve been doing more journaling as a part of my prayer lately, too, as a part of my discernment. I can feel the Lord calling me to something and I want to follow. This is the basis of my New Year’s resolution: “To journey with God, grateful for my blessings, moving forward into the future.” (In a way, I even journaled to get that resolution! Using a sketch pad, I wrote words and phrases that captured the movements of last year and my hopes for the coming year. I used color and simple drawings to express it. When I reviewed it prayerfully, a resolution emerged.)

Cepero begins by describing how journaling can be prayer. She encourages starting with a prayer. Specifically, she recommends using Psalm 139. What makes keeping a journal a form of prayer is much like other spiritual practices; it is about being aware, opening to God, to ourselves, and the world around us. It reminds us that God is with us through it all, and helps us to look beneath the externals of our daily activities to see where God is present. We are attentive to our own reality so we can have hearts that are more in tune with God’s presence and better hear God’s transforming word for us. She emphasizes that there is a connection between knowledge of self and knowledge of God. I have found that to be true in my own life. I often find God’s will for me where the Holy Spirit and my own spirit meet; this is how I hear the indwelling of God within me.

One obstacle to deep journaling is fear. It can block us from recognizing and facing what is really happening. Paradoxically, Cepero describes it as our friend, because a feeling of fear indicates where God wants to meet us. Entering in means drawing closer to what we truly desire. When we name our fears, she states, it isn’t courage that we find, but our unclaimed selves, and with that, God’s embrace and a love for what once inspired fear. This resonates with me. I value self-awareness, and generally welcome insights into myself. There are times, though, where I hesitate to face something. When I push through that, though, I always find something inherently true about who I am.

Throughout the book, Cepero includes journaling prompts, which she encourages the reader to participate in. One prompt was called Naming What I See—Or Not. The journaler starts by describing the room she is in, recording what she sees in her environment without judgment or reflection. Then she is invited to reread the entry, and respond to what she saw, or didn’t see. I did this exercise in my bedroom. The most revealing aspect of it was noting what wasn’t there. I noticed that I had very few family photos displayed; the few I had were small and in the corner. I noted that I didn’t have anything from my ministries in my bedroom, not even an appointment calendar. The one calendar I do have hanging up is for inspiration. Instead, there are multiple paintings that I’ve created as part of my prayer. I have items that are personally meaningful or make me smile around the room. The only books that are visible are spiritual reading books and I have religious items around the room. Upon reflection, I concluded that my bedroom serves a specific purpose: it is my private space, where I can find in solitude both a connection to God and my inner voice.

Other prompts have several steps to them. Cepero dedicates a whole chapter to the Examen Exercise, dividing it into four steps for journaling. They are: Praying for the light of the Holy Spirit, Looking back in thankfulness, Praying into the heart of the day, and Letting go and holding on. I have been trying to pray the Examen for some time now and find that doing it in my journal is quite helpful. I now journal my Examen daily. After praying for the guidance of the Holy Spirit, I list what I’m grateful for. Praying into the heart of the day refers to praying with the strongest emotion I felt that day. Then I explore what aspect of the day I’d like to hold onto and what I’d like to release. By the time I’m done with this, I’m much better able to identify where God was present in my day.

              I’ve benefitted from the journaling prompts Cepero gives, and look forward to continuing her book!