I started this blog post at the beginning of July – then did an update on 10th July. It got saved in drafts as I hadn’t got around to putting in the pictures, which is what I’m going to do now.
Challenges are good for you. They stretch you and help you to improve, whether that’s fitness, art or in this case prayer. I pray every day. It’s part of who I am and what I do. So in one respect being challenged to pray for 60 days isn’t much of a challenge.
However, I am adding this time of prayer onto the rest of my usual times of prayer. The challenge for me is for me to make time to do it. It is also good for me to pray in a slightly different way than normal.
The challenge has been set as part of the Creative Christianity Summit. Those who chose to participate are part of an extra Facebook group for mutual support and encouragement. We have committed to using a short piece of scripture, Philippians 4:4-7 as the basis for prayer.
Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:4-7. (NIV)
There is also a prayer journal aspect. We are encouraged each time of prayer to spend time in worship before going on to telling God what is worrying us, giving thanks and then making requests. We write in our prayer journals. We are also encouraged to write down any answers to prayer.
Most days this has been my mid-day time of prayer. When not leading morning prayer with others I will incorporate it into my morning prayer.
I have noticed from the second day onwards I have started each time of worship with a hymn. Below you will see the photos of my journal pages – taken quickly just now. Not every day started with a hymn, but most have. You will also notice that some are more decorative than others. If you want to journal, then just using capital letters or a coloured crayon will add something to your entry. You don’t have to be artistic to incorporate art into your prayer journal.
Well, that all took longer than anticipated. It always does. I uploaded the photos in order and then WordPress jumbled them up. Oh well. I am going on retreat today so switching off after posting this. I hope that the pictures have given you a glimpse of how simple it is to keep a prayer journal. I haven’t shared all the content – it is much too private and some of it confidential….. between me and God.
Elizabeth Jones' Diary 