Wednesday, September 14, 2016

Autumn Prayer Journal Curators, what the heck am I talking about?!

Hi friends! I am back with you and energized to continue on with what I'm calling the Fall 2016 Managing Stress series. ;-) Today I wanted to flesh out the idea I mentioned earlier in the week about using blogging to aid in easing stress and anxiety, and building a stronger prayer life. And by blogging, I also mean journaling. And you and I can do it together! Here's what I'm thinking:

You may notice the cutesy graphic and title over at the left. ;-) I'm a librarian, so the "curator" part felt apt. What I'd like to do every week is keep a physical journal of various things that I want to use to improve my prayer life, and to keep a positive outlook on life in general. I have 2 *snort* prayer journals on order, but they won't come into play until next liturgical year. So for now, I just have a store bought, lined hardcover journal. This is for ease in jotting things down during the week. From there, I'm going to blog about these same things, to keep me accountable, and to share them with you. My acronym is INSPIRE:

Inspiration - Where am I finding inspiration this week?

Nourish - What am I doing to nourish my prayer life each week? This may stay the same from week to week, or change as I try new things.

Spread Joy - Coming from the Facey Curmudgeon over here, ;-) what am I doing to spread to joy to others this week?

Projects - This is the creativity piece. What am I working on in a given week that is inspiring me creatively?

Involve - How am I getting more involved in my faith this week, and trying to grow in knowledge and wisdom?

Reflect - A short reflective prayer based upon my experiences during the week.

End goals - What can I do better next week?

I like the idea of all of this making me more prayerful and grateful. This is all about being an exercise in growing in a positive direction as a person, and to maintain accountability. And YOU can join me. ;-)

I thought about creating a linkup each week for the fall, but frankly, I don't feel like it. :0 Plus, some of you may not keep a blog and may not want to start one. So, I was thinking that if you'd like to join in, you can:

(1) post a link to your INSPIRE blog post each week, if you have a blog. OR,

(2) Leave your INSPIRE segments in the comment section of each weekly post.

What do you all think? It cheers me up to think of having a simple, weekly formula for trying to be more positive, and to share it all with you. Would you participate? Let me know in the comments. :-)

There is also a spiritual reading component to our autumn cheerleading rally. I have a full out reading list (horray!) and will be going over that extensively on Tea Time this week, which I will record either tomorrow or Friday. Until then my loved ones!

4 comments:

  1. I really like this idea! I've been trying hard to focus on gratitude and staying positive this week, and I think INSPIRE will fit quite nicely. The accountability will be a nice touch, too.

    Also looking forward to that reading list later this week. ;-)

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  2. Sam! So glad to have you along for the ride! <3

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  3. I like how INSPIRE seems to flow together nicely. The things that inspire me could also be nourishing in some way and then I can't really spread joy if I haven't been nourished. I bet other connections come about as I think about the questions each week. I've got a journal I can use and I've been thinking I should be spending more time in reflection so I'm going to give this a try.

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  4. oh Melanie, so glad!!!! I can't wait to see where this goes.

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