How to Organize a Simple Prayer Journal

Organizing a prayer journal can be fun, but it’s important to keep it simple so that you can finish the process and start using it! The journal I am going to show you is not about the cute and pretty details (though I love that stuff too)… it about making a quick well-organized prayer journal that will jump start your prayer life!

I just LOVE organizing things. All things. Drawers, closets, planners, binders, tools, you name it! If it involves organizing, I’m in!

Many might look at this as a strength, but don’t be deceived. Addiction to organizing things can very much be a struggle, source of procrastination, and paralysis! Let me explain.

I SO much enjoy the process of organizing and planning, but often the process ends there. Let me give you the perfect example of this pattern which occurs in my life again and again.

I once was challenged by a friend to make a scripture binder. Basically a binder with a tab for each thing you struggle with personally (i.e. patience, anger, time management, etc.). Then in each tab you write scripture verses to help you combat that struggle. That way when you are overcome by one (or more) of your struggles, you can just grab your binder, flip to the tab and start reciting verses in order to ground yourself. The concept is fantastic. Brilliant! I simply couldn’t wait to get organizing!

I found the perfect binder. One of those with a clear cover, where you can slide in a custom cover. I spent hours flipping through scrapbook paper, finding just the right color combination. Then I cut it all just to the perfect size. My verse notebook looked beautiful, award winning, stunning.

But that’s where the process came to a screeching halt.

I brought the Pinterest-perfectly crafted binder to Bible study to show my friend I completed the challenge. Then I brought it home, set it on the shelf and never added one verse! (shaking my head). That was 6 years ago!!! It’s still on a shelf.

So over the years I have learned that if I want to complete a task and take action, I must keep the organizing process simple. Once I have mastered it, then I can allow myself to go back and beautify things. This way I don’t allow myself to get too carried away by the organizing process, neglecting the whole reason why I was organizing in the first place. That is how I came up with my very simple version of my Prayer Journal.

I have tried a million ways… this one is simple and helps me stay consistent.

If you are looking for a fancy prayer journal with cute graphics on pages, and prayer cues, this is not it. This is a simple, effective way to make sure you are praying for all areas of your life consistently. All you need is a notebook… any notebook will do, I have used ALL sizes. They all work.

I used to have a separate prayer journal and Bible Journal, but I have recently combined the two to simplify even further which works well for me. Read through my process or watch my video tutorial and decide what works best for you. This is not the type of journal you write in daily. Once this journal is setup, this is more or less a set of pages that you flip through and pray through daily.

**Note: This is not the only way or the “right” way to pray. This is simply the way that I find most effective for me.** 

Here’s what you do:

We are going to follow the acronym A.C.T.S. which I will explain as we go.

On the first page write Adoration.

On the next page write Confession.

On the next page write Thanksgiving

Next we will get to the Supplications which will take up quite a few pages. Write down the name of each of your family members on a separate page of your journal. If you are using a tiny journal, skip a page in between names. Otherwise write them on consecutive pages. My journal is a 5″x 7″, so one page front and back is enough for each family member.

Next write down each day of the week on consecutive pages (again, if you are using a tiny journal, skip a page between, otherwise front and back should be sufficient for one week day). I will explain what these pages are for later.

Okay, your basic structure is done! How easy, that took 3 minutes! Now time to fill it in.

Now that you have the basic structure done, here is what you do next:

A.C.T.S. is a nice reminder for the basic structure on how to pray.

A stands for Adoration: Adoration is simply expressing adoration for (aka praising) God. This is a terrific way to get your heart in the right place for prayer time. It does not have to take long or be fancy. It can be something as simple as reciting a few of your favorite verses that express the awesome power of God. Or it can be singing your favorite worship song. Whatever it may be, write down your preferred Bible verses or the lyrics to your favorite worship song on the page in your notebook labeled Adoration. This will grow and develop as you spend more time with the Lord.

C stands for Confession: Growing up I always thought confession had to be a formal event taking place in church. But Hebrews chapter 10 reminds us that because Jesus tore the curtain, we can now meet with God ourselves, confessing our sins to him. Jesus is our mediator and this can be done anytime and anywhere. On this page I like to write down my favorite verses that remind me that once my sins are confessed to God, my slate is clean. I spend these few minutes confessing my sins from the day before (or that morning) and then read through the verses on the page. This helps me to let go of the sins I have confessed and move into my prayer time with a clean heart and clear conscience. Again this only takes a couple of minutes (sometimes longer depending on how bad of a day I had the day before, AHHH)!

T stands for Thanksgiving: Some people choose to have a completely separate gratitude journal. However, for sake of simplicity, I like to keep it all together. I simply write down a few verses that express thanksgiving to God (Psalm 100 is a great chapter for this). I also try to say 5 things I am thankful for; I don’t write them down. I simply say them aloud (or in my head if I’m trying to be quiet) and thank God for them. Keep it simple friends!

S is for Supplications: Now that we have completed ACT our hearts are ready for S. Supplications. Supplications is simply our requests to God.

Praying for your immediate family is something that we need to do every day. So the pages labeled with your family member names will be prayed through daily.

All you have to do is make a list of things you want to pray for for that particular family member on that page. Each family member has different struggles, concerns and needs, so each list will look different. Not sure what exactly to pray for your children or spouse? Stay tuned for my post coming later this week about praying for your children and praying for your spouse (a general guideline to get you started).

Now for the last pages labeled for the days of the week. What’s that all about? Well, it is my way of praying for ALL THE THINGS!

I am referring to the all the requests outside of your family. How often does somebody ask you to pray for them and you say you will but then you forget! I’ve done it a million times and then they thank me for praying and I feel like an idiot. I used try to pray for EVERYTHING everyday and felt so overwhelmed. I would seldom get through my list or I wouldn’t pray at all. I don’t know about you, but if  I am overwhelmed by something, I often avoid it all together. So this is my way of praying for all the things consistently (not daily).

Simply choose a theme for each day of the week. I personally have one theme I pray for each day of the week and then I choose one group of extended family to pray for each day too. So if you are my sibling and reading this… I am sorry I only pray for you one day a week, but not daily. I love you LOL

Here is my list to give an example:

Monday: Missionaries & One of my siblings and their family

Tuesday: Babies/Pregnancies & Another one of my siblings and their family

Wednesday: Cancer Prayer Requests & My third sibling and their family

Thursday: Neighbors/Friends & My parents

Friday: Other Health Concerns & One of my husband’s siblings and their family

Saturday: US Government/World Issues & My husband’s other sibling and their family

Sunday: My Church, Pastor, Ministries & My In Laws

As you make your notebook, don’t feel like it has to be perfect before using it. Get the rough structure in place. Commit to praying daily and it will develop over time. I am constantly adding requests and crossing things out as they get answered. It will evolve overtime.

Don’t wait for it to be perfect to start. The pursuit of perfection can paralyze us. Get the basic plan in place and take action. Having a prayer journal is also a great way to be more aware of how God is working in our lives. God is doing miracles in our lives every single day, but often times we simply aren’t paying attention. When we are writing down our prayer requests, we are more in tune with how God is working in our lives.

Keep it simple and just commit to starting today! Prayer is so powerful, don’t wait another day!

More of a visual learner? Check out my video tutorial here.

xoxo

Allison