MAP prayer journal

The facilitator of our dialogue with God is the scriptures.
Elizabeth O'Connor

Nobody finds time for prayer. You either take time for it, or you don't get it. If I am waiting for it to be given to me, it shall never be given.
Joan Chittister

Everything that one turns in the direction of God is prayer.
Ignatious of Loyola



One of the great and ongoing struggles of my spiritual life has been establishing a discipline of prayer. Learning recently that this is characteristic of my personality type (regardless of which religion is practiced) gave me some relief in the sense of "I'm not the only one," but didn't let me off the hook because the same analysis points out that forms of prayer and meditation can be most powerful for those who are driven in the way many of us are. We need to be reminded that time spent in prayer is time well used, not wasted. The MAP Journal is the way I've adapted Biblical journalling to better suit my approach to scripture.

People who work or volunteer at churches often read the Bible only to fulfill responsibilities for preaching or preparing for Bible studies. This kind of reading is necessary, but it should not be confused with reading for spiritual growth. Reading for work is no substitute for devotional reading where the Bible is concerned.

What scripture can do, if we learn how to let it, is give us direction, which is one reason I use the acronym MAP to describe my spiritual reading of scripture. MAP reminds me that I am engaged in devotional Bible reading in order for God to direct my steps. MAP also stands for Message, Application and Prayer. These headings help me be intentional about letting the encounter between the Bible and me, mediated by the Holy Spirit, lead to some form of positive response.

A mature prayer life involves not only talking to God about what we want, but also ways to let God instruct us about what God wants.

Though I've created a template for printing a MAP journal with the headings pre-printed, right now I'm using a Moleskine Ruled Journal, and I simply write in the headings on two blank facing pages as I start. On the left, I write "Scripture" near the top and "Notes" part way down. On the right page, I allow roughly equal spaces labeled: "Message," "Application," and "Prayer." I work through these more-or-less in order, and am thinking about the following things.

Scripture:
I believe a reading plan of some kind is helpful. It can be as simple as one of the "through the Bible" plans, or you can run a book - a chapter a day. One of the great coincidences of Scripture is that when the New Testament was divided up into Chapters, it was divided into 365. Read a chapter a day. Several denominations have developed "lectionaries," which are plans for reading scripture. I am most familiar with the Revised Common Lectionary which gives 4 readings for each Sunday These could be read during the week in preparation for Sunday (although I suggest that preachers should be deliberate about separating "work" and "devotional" reading). This space in your journal is reserved as a place to write out the verse(s) that, in the words of one of my spiritual guides, "glimmers." Sometimes words jump off the page or the screen for reasons we don't need to fully comprehend. When it happens, let's take notice. It is helpful to activate a different part of our brain by writing it out. Also, when we come back to review this journal in the future, it will be much more user friendly to us if we have written out the verse completely.

Notes:
I imagine people setting off on a Lewis and Clark-like journey. A Bible reading plan of some kind giving some direction along with the goal of growing closer to God. Along the way, they take notes about the discoveries they are making, noting features of the landscape, naming the new life they turn up, writing down the questions that come to them, about which they may want to find answers at a later time (this is not the time to open a commentary. That's a different kind of reading.) This is also the space where you write down those intrusive thoughts that try to pull your focus off of the work of this moment.

Message:
This is where you write down the personal message you have gotten during your time of prayerful reading. It will be clear to you that it comes out of the scripture, but because it is personal, it doesn't need to be obvious to anyone else how it arises from what you have read.

Application:
Research has proven that just knowing the right thing, doesn't usually lead us to change. Remember James 1:24 "Be Doers of the Word and not Hearers only who deceive themselves." The application should be specific and doable. What can I do today to put this new message into practice?

Prayer:
We write out a prayer to God. Be careful of abreviations you won't recognize when looking back at this in two or three years. Ask for God's help in following through on your commitments.

As a perfectionist, often prone to wanting to impress people, I've had to train myself to approach journalling with the idea that it is for my eyes only. I don't need to be profound, make a discovery that has never been made before, or even worry about whether or not anyone else will be able to read my handwriting. This also involves developing a level of trust in yourself that will free your subconscious mind to to surface very private and potentially embarrassing truths. These may be the most important things I have to deal with at present.

God Bless you on the journey - no matter what your journey looks like.