A spiritual journal can be an invaluable help in our journey to holiness.
The following are some ways to utilize a personal journal.
1. Examination of Conscience - Catholics are required to exam their consciences at the end of each day. Writing down our sins nightly will make our confessions better as we will not be apt to forgot the serious sins or even venial sins we need to confess because they have been written down. One note of caution though. Once our sins have been confessed and absolved we should not go back and re-read the past sins. We should trust in God's forgiveness and mercy.
2. Thanking God - We can make a list of the blessings and graces from God in our journal. Even if we list one thing a day we are thankful for, it will help to create a grateful heart in us. Once we start to list our blessings and graces, we will see how much we take for granted and how much we owe God thanks. Also, once we start listing our blessings and graces, our list will grow to be very long.
3. Talking to God, the Blessed Mother or the Saints - You can tell God your problems, concerns, worries, and anything you need by writing it down in your journal. Reading a passage from Scripture and then waiting to God to talk to you will help you have a conversation with God through your writing. The same can be done with His Blessed Mother who is also our mother and the saint or saints of your choosing. Ask them for help. There are so many saints especially for particular concerns or causes, even ones we may not be familiar with as are the more popular ones. There are also Servants of God, Venerables, Blesseds who may want to help us and we in turn can help them in order for them to be officially declared a saint in the Catholic Church.
4. Our Faults and Weaknesses - We can list the faults and weakness we need to overcome. Writing these faults down will help gauge our progress each day.
5. Inspirations - As we do our spiritual readings we are bound to come across a quote that inspires us to holiness. We should then copy that quote or inspiring words in our journal.
6. Prayer Requests - We can list the requests for prayers for those in need. They don't just have to be from those close to us, who have requested our prayers, but for needs around the world, or locally. We can also list the names of those who have died because the Holy Souls in Purgatory could use our help in getting out.
7. Holy Hour of Adoration - During Adoration before the Blessed Sacrament we can again talk to God, we can tell Him how much we love Him. We can ask Him to help us grow in holiness, to love Him more and to be a good example to others. We can also list our prayer intentions during the Adoration hour.
