Slow Down, Write it Down 1 (2)

 

Do you want to stare down the monster of busyness in the face, and according to a study published in psychological science improve your brain? Pull out your journal each morning and write stuff down by hand. Better yet, write down your concerns, prayers, and blessings. Keep it simple or even go as far as to say write it down in pencil, doodle, erase, and write it down again until you get it just as it should be.

Could this even help you connect more with God? The answer is yes… and no. Of course, God doesn’t need us to, or particularly care if we keep a hand written journal, use a keyboard, or even if you don’t do a quiet time every morning. He is not manipulated by our routines. He wants our hearts. But we need structure to keep God first and foremost in our hearts and minds. I have trouble focusing given the high information age we have been born into. Perhaps, you might also. And there are some techniques that correspond with how God made us that help us focus, and writing things down by hand is one of them.

One of the the Devil’s tricks is to get us off the course given to us by God. It is almost as if we stroll through life as fish with a thousand pieces of bait being reeled out in front of our faces each day waiting for us to bite.  Each one designed to get us just a little bit off course until we have nibbled, been yanked, and swam for our lives enough that when we finally get our bearings, we are way off the course we started on. By slowing down, usually in the morning, to write what we appreciate, write our petitions, go back and read what we have said, and be thankful is good way to track our direction. (See Writing a Book that Matters) 

One of the Devil’s other tricks is getting us to think we don’t have time. It can be done tomorrow. Yes, there are times we need to act right now. And in a rush world we sometimes need to jump on things. But we often have no idea what to jump onto. We leap for a Shetland pony going to the petting zoo when what we really wanted was a stallion going to the rodeo. It may be worth waiting a little while to go to the rodeo. But when we slow down and write it down it makes us stop, focus, and just enjoy being with God. We can trust him. It is in the journey despite what cynics may say. We grow in sanctification on the journey. We grow in appreciation on the journey. We grow in love on the journey. It is good to pause and remember this.

The single focused apostle Paul, who did more than any other person save Jesus Christ, to change the world for good told us to be patient in tribulation, rejoicing daily in God, and continuing unwavering in prayer. Slowing down and writing down is a great tool that helps us do just that.

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