Journal exercises

Here are some fun exercises to try, whether you have never journalled, or are a veteran.

1. Draw how you feel right now, using colour and line, no words.

2. Think of a situation that you are wrestling with and that you can't see a way through. Draw how you feel about it. Step back and look at what you have put down on the paper. Are there any revelations?

3. Look through some magazines, find a person whose demeanour speaks to you, and base a page round it. It might be about how you feel, or it might spark an idea in you.

4. Draw some wiggly lines across the page and write a favourite quotation between them.

5. Write a list of desirable qualities for your life but use different styles of writing for each. Use different orientations for them.

6. Write the alphabet down the side of a piece of paper and think of a quality of God or one of His names for each letter. Base a page on it.

7. Draw a map of your journey so far. See how far you have come and consider where you are heading. This may take the shape of an old-fashioned treasure map, or a London underground style.

8. Draw a mask. Ask God in what ways you wear a mask every day. How do your present an untrue image of yourself to the world? Ask for His help in shedding that mask.


There is nothing wrong with writing your journal like a diary if that is what works for you. But there are a couple of things you might want to try that will make it easier to read and reflect on.

* Don't feel the need to fill the page. Empty space can enhance what you have put down.
* Underline important words and phrases
* Box things that you want to draw attention to.
* Use arrows to show things that are linked, that flow from one another. Cause and effect.
* Use different writing styles and sizes.
* Don't write everything in the same direction. Just because convention says you have the page in portrait orientation doesn't mean that you have to follow it!
* Use different colours
* Don't do the same layout for every page - mix it up a bit!
* Don't be afraid to use colour and images.
* Have fun! The idea is to engage with God in new and exciting ways.