Journaling: Slowing Down Into Discipleship

My mind tends to move too fast for its own good.  That isn't an indication that I'm smart... probably the opposite.  I don't really complete a thought before I'm on to something else.  I'm also very easily distracted.  All of this makes prayer and discipleship pretty difficult.  It is hard to get real... to dig deep... when a prayer about forgiveness turns into a random thought about something a friend said to me earlier.

One of the ways I've learned to slow down and dig deeper in my life is by writing.  Pen on paper focuses my thoughts.  When that thought is a prayer it also tends to burn deeper and give space for the Holy Spirit to speak to me.  So I'm praying... I'm listening... and I'm focused. 

This Semester, some of the students in our Youth Group are going to try to slow down a bit with me.  They want to dig deeper.  They want to connect with God with earnestness... with intensity... on the slow.  So this Semester, we've identified some of the areas we want to pause and think through.  We are adding some journals to our bag of tricks.  Everything we talk about at Quest or Youth Group we want to bolster our prayer life and our digging deeper as we personally talk to God on the slow. 

This Blog is going to focus on this as well.  I'll be typing some ideas to inspire conversation with God on the topics of temptation, judgment, patience and swearing... some areas we could all use a bit more Jesus in our lives.  WWJDSI!