The Guide to Keeping a Spiritual Journal

The Guide to Keeping a Spiritual Journal
by HandeConcepts

OVERVIEW

When you think of a journal, you might think of a personal diary, or a notebook with recorded thoughts and feelings. A spiritual journal is similar to this idea, but with more emphasis on the spiritual aspects of life rather than just being a daily record of events. Recording and reviewing our personal thoughts has always been an extremely valuable tool for learning and understanding about ourselves and our behavior. The human brain is an amazing device and our thoughts often occur to fast and to numerous for us to rely on our memory to recall and organize what has been produced. Only when we capture our thoughts in writing do they become easier to analyze and understand.

WHAT IS A SPIRITUAL JOURNAL

A spiritual journal is not just a regular journal, but rather a written record of spiritual matters that relate to us personally. A spiritual journal is most effective if it is used as a tool to help us keep up with our spiritual journey. A spiritual journal can be an extremely helpful tool for recognizing God's active work in our lives. In fact, a spiritual journal becomes invaluable as it becomes strengthened by our daily spiritual life, especially if we write in it often.

THE VALUE OF A SPIRITUAL JOURNAL

A spiritual journal creates value to us in several ways. To start, written thoughts can be referenced later for comparison to things we have learned or beliefs that we may have held. It also allows us to refer back to our previous thoughts without having to start from the beginning each time. It allows us the ability to review how we have thought and handled previous situations which can help us to learn and hopefully chose a better way of acting next time something similar occurs.

KEEPING A SPIRITUAL JOURNAL

A spiritual journal is a personal thing so there is no right or wrong way to keep one. One recommendation is to consider recording Bible verses, sermon notes, or phrases that have a special meaning for you. These are all worthy items to record in your journal. You might also include any feelings you might have as you study the Bible. Experiences that have been meaningful to you are also good items to be added. Insights where you feel God is revealing himself to you can be included. You might also include quotes from books that are meaningful to you. Consider recording seemingly unimportant thoughts that come to your mind. Make note of any visual images that touch your life. You may have seen something recently that revealed God’s truth to you. Be sure to take note of your feelings at different times. You might write how you feel about events, persons, ideas, and relationships. Also, you might write about what books you are reading and how they may have affected you? You might even keep a list of books you have read previously. Consider writing helpful phrases from these books in your journal. In addition, you might also write a summary of every month to record highlights and important events that happened during that period. A good practice is to keep a spiritual journal with your Bible to record important new insights, prayers from the Bible that have been helpful to you, and meaningful passages from scripture.

GETTING STARTED

Each individual will have their own method for starting the writing process. Some people recommend quickly writing everything that comes to mind. Others will recommend a more slow and methodical approach. You should choose a writing style that fits your personal thought process. In either case as you begin, ask the question: "What is the most important thing that is happening in my life at this point in time?" It may be helpful to create a mental image of events so that you can choose words to describe the image. Write all your feelings you have in one day. Write feelings, descriptions, reflections (re-examination of past events), images, thoughts, Biblical quotes, and quotes from books and eye opening revelations when they are fresh in your mind. These items are all good areas that should be considered for inclusion in your spiritual journal. Keep a list of events, past happenings, or important events that have happened in your life. Keep a running dialogue with yourself. Carry on an imaginary conversation with yourself. This can also be helpful. Your spiritual journal is the key to developing your spiritual life. Be vigilant with your journal and your life will be greatly enriched.

HELPFUL SUGGESTIONS

Journal notes should include entries by date. This allows quick retrieval of materials that have previously been entered. A helpful way to begin a daily entry is to write a brief sentence to record and briefly describe events which are taking place in your life. Describe anything which comes to your mind. State the facts about recent experiences as briefly as possible. Then include a detail account of the overall subject matter in a longer paragraph. This will help you reference your entries quickly by date, and without having to read the entire entry to get a feel for what you were talking about.

PAPER OR PLASTIC?

Now you might be thinking you need to acquire a paper notebook or a small pocket diary of some sort. The good news is HandeConcepts has developed a much more efficient method for allowing you to records, retrieve, sort, and edit your thoughts. With the Pocket PC or Desktop Edition of the Spiritual Journal, you can make new entries, search for previous entries, and edit entries using an easy to use digital spiritual journal. In this next section we will show how to use the Pocket PC and Desktop Editions of The Spiritual Journal. You should see how keeping a spiritual journal on the Pocket PC or Desktop is a much better solution than traditional paper.

POCKET PC AND DESKTOP EDITIONS

Adding Entries

Adding entries to The Spiritual Journal is extremely simple. All your journal entries are contained in an efficient database. To add a new journal entry, select File > New from the application’s main menu. A screen will appear with the 'Scripture' tab selected. The current date will already be entered into the 'Date' field. You may select a different date than the one provided by clicking on the date drop down handle on the right side of the date.

Next, select a testament (OT, NT, or NA). NA will allow you to enter a blank journal entry without making a scripture reference. OT or NT will change the list of books that are listed in the second drop down box. Now select a book and then type a verse in the text box, such as 3:16.

Once you have selected the testament, book, and verse, you may select the 'View Verse Online' option. (This option is displayed as a link in the Pocket PC Edition and a button in the Desktop Edition.) Selecting this option will cause book and verse to be displayed from the Bible Gateway website. (The Pocket PC Edition uses Pocket Internet Explorer to open a link, and the Desktop Edition uses an integrated web browser.) The Bible Gateway page that is retrieved will contain your book and verse that was entered as part of your journal entry. This option is useful for making scripture notes or referencing scripture while making entries.

Next, select the 'Journal' tab and enter your personal thoughts and insights. Organize these notes in a manner that is easiest for you to refer back to later. There is plenty of space to make notes and you can always quickly make a few key notes and then fill the rest in later when you have a free moment.

Finally, select the 'Keywords' tab. Enter words that you think are relevant to the entry you have just made. This feature is used later when you are searching for previous entries. It helps you to customize entries to the way that you think. For example, if an entry relates to compassion, but does not use the word in the Scripture or Journal note, you can associate the word with the entry here in the Keyword section.

Once the entry has been made, select the disk icon on the toolbar to save the entry. An 'Entry Added' message should be displayed. Now you may either close the entry, or you may continue to make additional updates to the entry. (The Pocket PC Edition closes entries by selecting the green checkmark close button on the toolbar, in the lower right hand corner.) Each additional update to the entry will require you to click the disk on the toolbar to update the entry.

Note: You may also select File > Save to either save or update an entry by using the file menu.

Updating Entries

Updating an entry is very similar to adding an entry. To update an entry, select an entry item from the master list of entries that is displayed when the application starts. Alternatively you can search for entries by using the search text box at the top of the main screen and then select an entry item from the filtered list. Once the entry is open, you can update the entry in the same manner as when you originally entered the entry (see Adding Entries).

Once the entry has been made, select the disk icon on the toolbar to update the entry. An 'Entry Updated' message should be displayed. Now, you may either close the entry, or you may continue to make additional updates to the entry. (The Pocket PC Edition closes entries by selecting the green checkmark close icon on the toolbar.) Each additional update to the entry will require you to click the disk on the toolbar to save the update to the entry.

Note: You may also select File > Save to either save or update an entry by using the file menu.

Deleting Entries

The process of deleting an entry is very similar to adding and updating an entry. To delete an entry, select an entry item from the master list of entries that is displayed when the application starts. Alternatively you can search for entries by using the search text box at the top of the main screen and then select an entry item from the filtered list. Once the entry is open, you can continue to delete the entry by selecting the 'Trash Can' icon on the toolbar.

Once the entry has been deleted an 'Entry Deleted' message will be displayed and the entry screen will automatically close and return you to the master entry list.

Note: Once an entry is open, you may also select File > Delete to delete an entry by using the file menu.

Searching For Entries

You can search for entries by using the search text box at the top of the master list screen. The search engine allows for full and partial search terms. Searches can be performed on scripture, journal, and keyword entries. To perform a search, enter text in the search box, then click the 'Search' button. To reset a search or redisplay the full list of entries, select the reset 'R' button. The reset button is located next to the search button at the top of the screen.

Cut, Copy, Paste

The cut, copy, and paste options are supplied to simplify text entry. These items work the same as the cut, copy, and paste features found in popular text editors.

View Verse Online

Note: This feature requires an Internet connection. When you select the 'View Verse Online' option, the application will attempt to determine if an Internet connection is present. If one is not present, then a message will displayed stating that a connection is not present and the action will be cancelled.

So as you can see, a digital spiritual journal offers many advantages over a paper version. You can easily add entries, update entries, delete entries, search for entries, and get access to online resources. Try that with a big yellow tablet and a number two pencil.

Registering the Product

The Spiritual Journal is a shareware product. Shareware means the product will function free of charge for a trial period and then registration will be required there after. The Spiritual Journal will function for a thirty day trial period without registration. The product must be registered after thirty days to continue use. A product key can be purchased through the HandeConcepts website or one of its partner sites. To access the regstration screen select Help > Register. The product registration screen will be displayed with one text box and a Register button. Enter the registration key you were given with your purchase and select the Register button. Upon successful entry, a message will appear notifying you that the product has been successfully registered.

Commitment

Most of all, it is important to remember that a spiritual journal is a tool. It is best used in conjunction with Bible study, active prayer, and a true desire to seek truth. You must commit yourself to its use, or you will not be able to reap the rewards of its use. We all have a need for learning and a spiritual journal is one way to assist us with that need. We wish you the best of luck in your journey.

-- The HandeConcepts Team

Product Support

Support for this product and all HandeConcepts' products can be found at www.handeconcepts.com or via the HandeConcepts support forums at www.handeconcepts.com/forums/. You may also send your support request to support@handeconcepts.com. Please include your name, product version, date of purchase, where the product was purchased, and a brief description of your issue. We will respond to all requests in the order in which they arrive. Please allow twenty four hours for a response.

About HandeConcepts

HandeConcepts is a Dallas based Independent Software Vendor (ISV) that specializes in bringing useful PC and Pocket PC applications to market.

The PC market is already well established and the mobile market is expanding at a quickened pace. The PC and Pocket PC platforms give developers the power to create useful applications as well as useful systems. HandeConcepts develops PC and Pocket PC applications to fit the demands of the market.

HandeConcepts believes that mobile applications will be tomorrow what cell phones are today. We will use them and will have a hard time remembering what it was like when we did not have them and HandeConcepts is working now to be a part of that future by building useful PC and Pocket PC applications.

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