The Importance of Prophetic Journaling

                           

            One of the classes taught at the Samuel Elijah Prophetic College is the Prophetic Scribe Course. When we think of scribes, we often either think of men writing on scrolls in biblical times or people writing about prophetic matters publicly through articles or books. We don’t think about personal writing that ministers to the individual. Some may even think people should not write about personal matters.

            In this post, I want to talk about prophetic journaling, a private type of writing. Even if you are not a scribe, you can take advantage of this type of writing. 

           Apostle Theresa Harvard Johnson, an authority on the Prophetic Scribe, was the speaker at the 2019 RJH Sons and Daughters Assembly this year. Her book The Scribal Anointingis the main text for the Prophetic Scribe course. In this book, she talks briefly about journaling in the most basic sense and also discusses how prophetic writers use journaling as an opportunity to converse with God. 

           This was King David’s scribal secret. If you look at many of David’s psalms, they begin with him calling out to God for help and end with him praising God. He entered into the presence of God when he was in despair and emerged restored. Here is one example: 

Psalm 3:1-4 

“Lord, how they have increased who trouble me! 

Many are they who rise up against me. 

Many are they who say of me,

There is no help for him in God. 

But you, oh Lord, are a shield for me, 

My glory and the one who lifts up my head. 

I cried to the Lord with my voice,

And he heard me from His holy hill.”

            When I first dedicated myself to the Lord at fifteen years old, I remember writing in a journal almost every day. Recently I looked back at old journals from this time and realized that many of the entries took the form of David’s psalms! They began with me calling out for help and ended with me praising God. At the time, I didn’t know much about the Bible or the prophetic and knew nothing about scribes. Although I began going to a youth group, I still didn’t always have someone I could talk to about my problems. Yet, I remember writing to God and clearly remember Him giving me peace and understanding. God was healing me through journaling. 

            I encourage everyone reading this to consider prophetic journaling. Some of you may already do this. If you do, know that it is biblical and keep doing it. If you never tried it, find a quiet space, get a journal and begin writing to God. Do this with the intention of conversing with God. You may find that you write about things that you are struggling with or things that are bothering you. Surrender these things to God and expect Him to hear you and heal you through writing. Journaling could relieve stress, deepen your relationship with the Lord and allow Him to bring healing and deliverance to you.  

God bless!

Minister Debra Szubrowski 

Blog Writer 

If God’s not in it, it’s best to just quit it.

      If God's not in it, it's best to just quit it. Lately God has been dropping this sentence into my spirit. When thinking about it and inquiring of the Lord for its meaning, I realized it was about obedience. God was speaking to me about obedience. For every idea we have, activity we take part in or relationship we are involved in, we should ask “Is God in it?” If the answer is no, then we should abandon it because it’s a waste of our time. Who knows what’s best for us more than our heavenly Father? Why should we go off track by doing something that God has not called us to do?
      Now just to clarify, when I say activities, I’m not talking about routine activities like doing laundry and household chores, paying bills or exercising. These are things that don’t need questioning. I am talking about the many activities we find ourselves busy with. Should we go to every church conference or event that we are invited to on Facebook? Should we get involved with that ministry? Should we implement that idea? Should we take that advice?
       This modern world sometimes offers us too many options. We could get so busy that we miss God’s plan and purpose in our life. I believe that God is calling us to simplify our lives in 2019. Proverbs 19:21 says “Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand.” (ESV).

So how do we know if God’s in it? Here are a few simple ways to know.

1. Ask God for some clarification on what his main plans and purposes are for you. Seek him for a vision for your life. If you don’t know the vision, ask him. James 1:5 states “If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you”. After you have done that, look at the activity that you are thinking about doing and see if it fits into God’s plans for you. Although God sometimes wants to do an entirely different thing in our lives (unrelated to our main vision), this is more of an exception than the rule.

2. The idea or direction comes to us when we are praying or spending time in God’s presence. Sometimes, it’s not something we would normally think of on our own.

3. The idea keeps coming back to us over and over again. We can’t seem to forget about it. This is often a nudging of the Holy Spirit. We should write the idea or direction down and follow through. Often, there will be a restlessness in our spirit until we complete it.

These are just a few simple ways we can hear God’s voice about his direction for our lives. There are many other ways. Check out our previous blogs for more information. Also, check out the 12-week and 24-week courses that are offered at the Samuel Elijah Prophetic College. Consider taking a class in the near future.

Blessings
Minister Debra Szubrowski
Blog writer