Anyway..... I was doing some reading in a book this morning and something stood out for me. I used to journal every single day, either putting my prayers into a journal, or just journaling my hurt and anger and frustrations and my joys into a journal. Over the past couple of years, I have stopped doing that on a daily basis. One reason is that I want to go through these 25-30 years of journals and remove a lot of things that I wrote. I wrote from anger, from hurt, from love, and just whatever I was feeling. Part of it is also that I have taken to writing into this blog almost every day because I have it close to my chair. Thanks to my son-in-law for giving me his own laptop to use so that I would have a nice one, it is thin and light and I just keep it next to my chair. I use it mostly for this blog, but I do have it close by for other things as well, such as when I have to type out a message. I just don't get on a personal computer much as with the work computer I have taken to doing a lot of other personal things on it.
So as I read in Shelter in God by Dr. David Jeremiah this morning, he shared that on an airline flight one time he came across an article on journaling that was interesting. And it is interesting, so much that I am going to type that article here. Here is what he wrote:
"Battling illness and pain with pen an paper may be unorthodox, but it may also spell relief. "People who write for twenty minutes a day about traumatic events reduce their doctor visits, improve their immune systems and, among arthritis sufferers, use less medication and have greater mobility," says James W. Pennebaker, Ph.D., a professor at the University of Texas at Austin, who has conducted studies on the topic.
....Why the relief? Suppressing negative emotions can weaken the immune system and arouse your fight-or-flight system, churning up blood pressure and heart rate. Writing about conflict or trauma helps organize the experience. The net effect is that people can move beyond the stressful event.
The author quotes another Ph.D. Mark A. Lumley, an associate professor of psychology at Wayne State University in Detroit. This scholar theorizes that the positive results of journaling have something to do with the nature of pain. "Writing....about stressful events relieves the emotional part of pain. That's when the patient says, 'I can still feel it, but it doesn't bother me as much.'"
This particular article concluded that it is important for us to honestly express the issues of our lives. AMEN. That's what the Lord has been trying to tell us all along. If a journal can be a healthy thing, how much more can an honest, prayerful expression be when we bring our concerns before God? When I find myself within the dark, cold walls of life, feeling isolated and depressed, (yes, even I experience those times) I am so glad that I have a God whose patience has no limits, whose love cannot be exhausted, and whose tender mercies for me never come to an end.
And you also have that same God, who loves you beyond measure. He is always there, waiting for you to just share your hurt, your pain, your frustration with Him. It doesn't matter so much whether your journal it, or if your verbalize it. I think that is why I love Philippians 4:6-7 so much. Read it below.
Philippians 4:6-7 (NLT) Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.
As I have shared in previous posts about this scripture, which I love the most in the New Living Testament version, the words always stand out to me - Don't Worry; Pray. Tell God. Thank Him. THEN experience God's peace.
Life can be taken care of in just those words. When you tell God, although He already knows all about it, you are transferring your pain and frustration to Him, and He will give you peace and settle your heart and mind about the situation. Try it. It really does work when you give it to Him. He is in control of all things - some to teach us lessons of dependence, some to teach us how to fly.
I think I'll grab an old journal and write some things in it this morning. Need to see if I can find a blank one so that I can start the new year with a fresh one. But then, this blog has been my journal for several months now. Although I don't spew EVERYthing.... I probably do share more than I should. God gets to hear the rest.
Blessings on your day!
No comments:
Post a Comment