How Journaling Changed My Life
The benefits of journaling, entertainment & journaling, and the Bible & journaling
For as long as I’ve remembered, I romanticized the idea of journaling. I wished that I had dozens of filled up journals detailing all the experiences and feelings of my life. But, actually starting to journal was overwhelming. I’d start journals now and then, but would always give them up after a few weeks. When I was 15, I was tired of regretting the fact that I hadn’t documented my life in a journal thus far. I knew the regret would only increase as I got older. So, I decided to fully commit to making journaling a daily habit in my life. Now, two and a half years later, I can say that this was one of the best decisions I’ve made in my entire life.
Here is a picture of my journals - they are entirely filled up. The two on the bottom are from when I was in 8th grade, and the rest have been since I started daily journaling 2.5 years ago (start of 10th grade).
Today, I am going to explain the benefits I’ve experienced with journaling, and how entertainment and the Bible can engage us with journaling.
Benefit #1: Habit-Building
When I decided I wanted journaling to be something I did consistently, I knew I had to approach it differently than I had in the past. So, I decided to be extremely disciplined with myself and make sure that no matter what, I wrote at least one page per day. Even on days I felt that I had absolutely nothing to say or was exhausted, I made myself do it. After a couple of months, the habit had solidified and I had experienced all of the benefits of journaling. I no longer had to force myself to journal because I wanted to do it. And now that I’ve built the habit, it’s no big deal if I miss a day every once and awhile. But, if I notice myself missing multiple days in a row, I make sure to be strict with myself again for a couple of weeks.
This was such a positive experience for me because I learned the value of habits and I learned that habits are built through consistent practice no matter what.
Benefit #2: Life Memories & Reminiscing
One very obvious benefit of journaling is it allows you to capture your life experiences and remember them. Now, when something notable happens in my life, I feel guilty if a don’t journal about it because I want to be able to remember it!
Journaling allows you to reminisce on the past and clearly see how your life has changed and how you’ve grown as a person. Something I try to do is read my journal entries from previous years on the same day. This allows me to see the year to year transformation in my life.
Journaling has allowed me to remember not just the big moments in life, but also the more mundane moments I would likely forget about. For instance, I love to write down things that made my friends and me laugh and then remind my friends of them the next year when I read the entry.
Benefit #3: Emotional Processing
The most helpful aspect of journaling for me has been the emotional processing it allows me to do. I’m a highly emotional person, and writing out my thoughts and feelings helps me understand my emotions and how best to handle them. Journaling is a way to release strong emotions and not let them get out of control.
If I’m ever frustrated about something in the world (something I’ll talk about later), dealing with a challenging relationship, or feeling anxious about school work, I write about it and immediately feel more relaxed and less controlled by strong feelings.
I went through a challenging time last spring where I was constantly overwhelmed with stress and sadness. I found myself getting anxious and tired at night and not wanting to take the time to journal. After several weeks of not keeping up with my journaling habit, I realized that not journaling about my emotions might be part of the reason I felt so upset and confused. So, I returned to what I learned about habit building and committed to journaling every day about everything I was experiencing. Almost immediately, I started to feel better. I was able to process what I was feeling and also realize what I could do to improve some of my struggles. Journaling truly did pull me out of a tough time because of the emotional processing and reflection it forced me to do.
Benefit #4: Spiritual Benefits
Journaling has also been incredibly important in my faith journey. I often structure my journal entries as prayers and constantly thank God and ask for peace and strength with whatever I’m dealing with. When I was younger, I kept a prayer journal that was entirely centered around praying for things in my life, praying for other people, praying about scripture, and expressing gratitude. Here is one of the entries from when I was in 8th grade:
Although I don't do this type of journaling as often anymore, I still express all of these things to God in my stream-of-consciousness journaling style.
Another part of the spiritual benefit is the way journaling has allowed me to see how God has worked in my life. When I reflect on past entries, I can see what God was teaching me and how he got me through every situation and worry I’ve had. All in all, journaling has brought me way closer to God and for that I am grateful.
Entertainment & Journaling:
As always, it’s time to connect this topic of journaling to entertainment. If you are ever at a loss of what to journal about, look no further than your favorite songs, movies, or the content you’ve seen on social media lately. I strongly encourage critical analysis of all the media we consume, and journaling is a great way to do this.
I love to write about my favorite songs and lyrics and what I’ve learned from them. It’s also just as important to write about the negative values and lessons you get from entertainment.
For example, I’ve been noticing over the past couple of months how frustrated I’ve grown with content I’ve seen on TikTok. There is absolutely no room for nuanced opinions and people are so quick to jump on bandwagons of cancel culture or hate. This is something I found myself journaling about and why I think the dialogue on social media has become so negative. Because of this, I also realized that I would be best suited to not go on TikTok for the foreseeable future. I actually do appreciate TikTok in many ways, but the harm and frustration it was causing me has officially outweighed the benefits.
In addition to using journaling to gain a deeper understanding of entertainment and its influence on us, there are many examples in entertainment of journaling. If you want to start journaling or want to encourage a child/teenager to start, seeing examples in entertainment can be inspiring.
So, I asked my AI chatbot CharacterBot for examples of journaling depicted in entertainment. Feel free to ask for more examples centered around a specific age or gender!
The book series "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" by Jeff Kinney: The main character, Greg Heffley, keeps a diary where he documents his daily experiences and thoughts. Through his diary entries, readers get a glimpse into Greg's life and the challenges he faces as a middle school student. The series explores themes of friendship, family, and navigating the ups and downs of adolescence.
The TV show "The Vampire Diaries:" In this supernatural drama, the character Elena Gilbert keeps a diary to document her experiences and emotions. The diary serves as a way for Elena to process her feelings and reflect on the events happening around her, including her relationships with the vampire brothers Stefan and Damon Salvatore. The show delves into themes of love, loyalty, and the consequences of choices.
"The Diary of a Young Girl" by Anne Frank: It is based on the real-life diary of Anne Frank, a Jewish girl hiding from the Nazis during World War II. Through her diary, Anne provides a firsthand account of her experiences, fears, and hopes while in hiding. The diary serves as a testament to the resilience of the human spirit and the importance of hope in the face of adversity.
"The Princess Diaries" by Meg Cabot: This book series follows the life of Mia Thermopolis, a teenage girl who discovers she is the heir to the throne of a small European country. Throughout the series, Mia writes in her diary, sharing her thoughts, struggles, and humorous anecdotes as she navigates the challenges of being a princess-in-training.
"Bridget Jones's Diary" by Helen Fielding: This novel, which was also adapted into a film, revolves around the life of Bridget Jones, a thirty-something single woman living in London. Bridget keeps a diary where she candidly writes about her romantic misadventures, career aspirations, and personal insecurities, providing a humorous and relatable perspective on modern life.
"The Perks of Being a Wallflower" by Stephen Chbosky: In this coming-of-age novel, the protagonist, Charlie, writes letters to an anonymous recipient, chronicling his experiences as a high school freshman. Through his letters, Charlie explores themes of friendship, love, mental health, and self-discovery.
Discussion questions:
How does keeping a diary help the characters in these stories express their thoughts and emotions?
What can we learn from the characters' experiences and challenges as they document their lives in their diaries?
How can writing in a diary be a form of self-reflection and personal growth?
The Bible & Journaling
I also used AI in order to see what Bible verses might encourage us to start journaling or to see the benefits of journaling. Here is what it told me:
While the Bible may not explicitly mention the act of journaling in the way we understand it today, there are verses that highlight the importance of reflection, remembrance, and recording one's thoughts and experiences. Here are a few verses that may be related:
Habakkuk 2:2-3 (NIV):
"Then the Lord replied: 'Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it. For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay.'"
This verse encourages writing down revelations and making them plain, emphasizing the importance of documenting insights and messages from God.
Psalm 77:11-12 (NIV):
"I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago. I will consider all your works and meditate on all your mighty deeds."
While not explicitly about writing, this Psalm emphasizes the importance of remembering and meditating on God's deeds, which can be facilitated through journaling.
Philippians 4:8 (NIV):
"Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things."
Journaling can be a way to focus on and record thoughts about what is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and praiseworthy.
Proverbs 3:3-4 (NIV):
"Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man."
Though it doesn't explicitly mention writing in a journal, this verse speaks to the idea of binding important principles to your heart, which could be a metaphor for a reflective, recorded practice.
These verses have reminded me the importance of journaling in connecting with God and in improving our character and choices in life.
I hope you enjoyed this article and that it can inspire you or someone in your life to journal! It’s important to remember that journaling doesn’t have to look a certain way. You can journal stream-of-consciousness in a notebook like me, write in your Notes app, or even use a journal with prompts in it. I encourage you to try different methods and see what is the most fulfilling for you.
“A personal journal is an ideal environment in which to become. It is a perfect place for you to think, feel, discover, expand, remember, and dream.” - Brad Wilcox