Keeping a Prayer Journal

I know from personal experience that living a life of prayer is not easy. Our lives are filled with a multitude of activities that tend to crowd out time for prayer. How many times have you been guilty of telling someone that you would pray for them? At the moment you heard of their plight, you were deeply moved by their request, and your heart genuinely yearned to be a part of bringing their need before the throne of God. And then what happened?

I’m sure that, if you’re like me, more times than you would like to admit, you forgot about the promise to pray before you rounded the corner of the church building! Why? Because you didn’t write the request down.

An easy way to improve your prayer-life immediately, by leaps and bounds, is by using a list or notebook.

Keeping a Prayer Journal

Start to carry a small spiral pad with you or use your phone to take notes. Then, whenever someone asks you to pray for them or shares that they are struggling with an issue, and you are burdened to pray for them, write it down, text it to yourself, or record it in notes or your email.

Transfer

Your next move is to transfer the request or need to your prayer notebook...and, of course, to faithfully pray! You can also walk around each room in your home, and log prayers for each person who occupies that room.

Talk to God

To help you do pray, schedule a prayer time each day. You can think about praying. You can talk about praying. You can even pray about praying! But until you schedule the act of prayer, it probably won’t happen. So tonight, when you plan the next day and make your to-do list, include a time for prayer in tomorrow’s schedule.

Turn to God’s Word

Pray using Scripture—there is power in God’s Word. Indeed, “The word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword” (Hebrews 4:12)! Make it a goal to incorporate Scripture into your prayers. List three of your favorite scriptures and memorize them to use in your daily prayer times. If you can’t think of any, begin with Colossians 1:9-14. In your prayer notebook, write out these and other Bible verses, leaving blank lines to insert people’s names.  I have an old denim-covered prayer book called “Pocket Prayers” that is nothing but Scripture passages with blank lines in the text for inserting whoever’s name comes to mind when praying those particular scriptures.

A prayer list or notebook, although physically only paper and cardboard, is a marvelous aid to your prayer life. It’s a tool that orders your prayers, helps you remember who and what to pray for, serves as a visual reminder of God’s faithfulness and goodness as He answers your prayer requests, and creates a historical accounting of God’s workings in your life and in others. Start keeping your personal prayer journal today!

RESPOND

Dear Lord, please help me be faithful to pray for others. I want to be a woman of my word who prays Your Word for my friends and family. Amen.

RENEWING RESOURCES 

Prayers for a Woman’s Heart – Pick up a copy of this prayer and devotional book to help you grow in wisdom, patience, and peace!  

REFLECT

Use a notebook or your phone to write down prayer requests as soon as you can after hearing them. Look for times in your daily schedule to pray.

REMEMBER

“We must begin and end every day with praising God, we must give Him thanks every morning for the mercies of the night and every night for the mercies of the day; going out and coming in, we must bless God.” -Matthew Henry