4:13 Podcast: The Power of Prayer Journaling with Laura Johnson [BONUS]

KC Wright: Welcome to a bonus episode of the 4:13 Podcast, where practical encouragement and biblical wisdom set you up to live the "I can" life because you can do all things through Christ who gives you supernatural strength.

Now, welcome your host, Jennifer Rothschild.

Jennifer Rothschild: Hey, Jennifer here, and it is a bonus episode. I'm just popping in because this is a week where we celebrate the National Day of Prayer. And whenever we have a podcast about prayer, you guys, your numbers go up so high -- your listening numbers -- because we're all longing to know how to pray, what we need to pray about. Is there a better way? Well, here's the thing...

Today, I'm going to talk to you just a little bit about prayer journaling, because I had this great opportunity to go to the College of the Ozarks, and that's right here in Southwest Missouri -- Ozark, Missouri area. But it's this wonderful university, Christian University. And these kids do not literally pay tuition in the traditional way. They work. That's how their tuition is paid.

I got to meet with the President and his wife. And his wife, the President's wife is named Lara Johnson. I'll introduce you to her in a minute. But she is an incredible author and speaker in her own right, [has] been in broadcasting and journalism for years. Anyway, she has just created this prayer journal. And as we were talking through it, I thought I just need to let you guys, the 4:13ers, hear about this prayer journal and even just get a little audio visit to the College of the Ozarks, because journaling our prayers is a way to really stay faithful in prayer. And so, Laura and I are just going to talk through what that means. And I thought you would enjoy a visit to the College of the Ozarks. So here we go.

[BEGINNING OF INTERVIEW]

Well, I'm sitting here at College of the Ozarks, and I'm sitting with my friend, who I will introduce you to. Her name is Laura Johnson. She's an amazing author, speaker. She happens also to be the first lady, which means she is the President's wife. President of College of the Ozarks is Dr. Brad Johnson. And so Laura and Brad are here in this beautiful university, nestled in the Ozark Hills. And so Laura, as sitting here together, we are in the Keeter Center. Is that correct?

Laura Johnson: We are! This beautiful facility where more than 400 of our students work, either in the restaurant or the creamery or here where our guests stay overnight. It is just a glorious place.

Jennifer Rothschild: It's beautiful. There's a grand fireplace. In fact, you said the creamery. We're sitting near the Creamery, aren't we?

Laura Johnson: We are! I've been eyeing the double chocolate. That's my favorite.

Jennifer Rothschild: Well, I will tell you, 4:13ers, I wish you could smell. They freshly bake these waffle cones every day.

Laura Johnson: We do.

Jennifer Rothschild: It's amazing. We just had lunch at the Keeter Center, so we got our tummies fed, and we got to just visit. But I just thought, I didn't want to leave this beautiful place, this beautiful university, and these beautiful people without you getting to meet one of them because my friend Laura has just released a prayer journal. And how perfect, Laura, that this is the National Day of Prayer, the time when we come together as a nation, as the people of God, and we just dedicate some time to prayer.

Laura Johnson: Absolutely.

Jennifer Rothschild: So what you've done in this book is you've provided a journal. Before we even get into it, I want us to talk a little bit about what it means to journal prayer. Because sometimes we think, "Well, I'm just going to sit down and pray." And of course, that's what we need to do. But what is prayer journaling and how is it different from just sitting down at your coffee table and praying in the morning?

Laura Johnson: Absolutely. Well, you know I have journaled my prayers for years, and it's really simple to me. Many times I've just used a plain spiral notebook, just to jot down my prayer request to the Lord. Because I believe that by remembering what God has done for us in the past, it gives us the courage to keep trusting him with the future.

Jennifer Rothschild: Isn't that the truth?

Laura Johnson: When we pray, at least when I sit and make some notes of what I'm praying about and who I'm praying for, it quiets my mind. It helps me notice what's tucked in the recesses of my heart. And it clarifies my request. When I'm thinking about my loved ones, what is it that I really want to see God do in their lives? How do I want to see a breakthrough?

Jennifer Rothschild: Well, yeah, because if you don't have almost a little bit of a -- categories or system -- I don't know about you, but sometimes I can just -- it'll all be this jumbled mess, and I'll start thinking about my grocery list or my to-do list.

Now, one of the things -- so because you've been a prayer journaler, you created this prayer journal. Before you tell us what these elements are, I want you to tell us what the title is and what scripture it's based on. Okay?

Laura Johnson: Absolutely! So the title of the journal is "Steadfast: A Guided Prayer Journal." It comes from Colossians 4:2 where Paul encourages us to continue steadfastly in prayer, to be watchful in it, and to be thankful.

Jennifer Rothschild: Okay, so then did you break down that verse? Is that how we journal?

Laura Johnson: Absolutely. Each page of the journal gives us those three opportunities. We pray. We take a moment to pause and write down our prayer request. There's a place for you to write down names or initials of people that you're praying for in your life -- your loved ones -- and then to jot down your prayer request. Who in your life needs a breakthrough? Who needs God's healing touch? This is just the place where you can record those items. So that's the pray section.

And then there's the watch section, because Paul tells us to be watchful in it. We want to be watching for where God is at work. We want to read scripture with expectation, listening for his love, his truth, and his guidance. We want to be eyes wide open, looking for glimpses of him throughout our day. It's amazing how when we keep our eyes open, we see his fingerprints in our lives. This is just a great place for us to make note of those things.

I remember a while back, I had had some harsh words with a loved one, and I really struggled to sleep that night. The very next morning, I get an email devotional, and the devotional was on Proverbs 19:11, I believe, and it talks about "it is to one's glory to overlook an offense." And to me, that was like a nudge from the Lord that day, encouraging me to forgive.

And so I think the Lord is speaking to us all the time, but sometimes we just need to be mindful of his presence and to be looking for him. So we pray, we watch, and we think. There are three spaces at the bottom of each page on the prayer journal to just pause and reflect on God's goodness in our lives. Where have we seen his kindness, his provision, or experienced his love? So there's a place where we can write down three blessings, big or small, that fill our heart with gratitude. Whether it's just a bright sunny day or a warm bed, whatever it is.

Jennifer Rothschild: Or the fragrance of waffle cones. Behind you.

Laura Johnson: Exactly. Here in the Keeter Center.

Jennifer Rothschild: That's right. That's something to be grateful for. Well, what I love that you've done, too, is that you've really broken it up in a way that makes us slow down and really process. And just because there's three blanks, I have a feeling -- If there's only three blanks there in your particular journal for being thankful -- obviously, the longer we do this, the more we're going to realize that's just not enough blanks.

Laura Johnson: That's right.

Jennifer Rothschild: We've got so much to be thankful for. One of the things that I know you do in the book that I would love for you to share, because I think this really helps us understand why prayer journaling is so important. You talk about a mirror. Tell us about the mirror.

Laura Johnson: Yes. When I was growing up and visiting my grandmother's house, there was one small object in her house that always captivated me. It was this small mirror that she had between her kitchen and the bedroom. It wasn't fancy or innate. It was just a modest brown rectangle. But to me, it just had this extraordinary allure because I would watch her. She was little and petite, just like you, Jennifer. She would pause in front of that mirror. She'd smooth her hair, clip on her earrings, and just add a swipe of her signature red lipstick. She was known for her red lipstick.

Jennifer Rothschild: I love that.

Laura Johnson: She would do all that as she looked in the mirror. It just seemed so elegant to me. I just dreamed of the day when I'd be tall enough to stand in front of that mirror and mimic her graceful routine. It just felt like a gateway to growing up. I just longed for the day that I could do that as well. I would visit her house and I'd stretch up on tiptoe, just hoping for the day that I'd catch a glimpse of myself in that mirror.

And finally, one unsuspecting day, I did. I was 11 years old, and I'll never forget, smiling at the face peering back at me because I had finally gotten tall enough to look in that mirror. And in that moment, the mirror became a silent witness to my growth, testifying that I wasn't the same as I used to be.

And I think all of us love those moments when growth becomes visible. You know, maybe for you it was pencil marks on a door frame, charting your height year after year. Or maybe it was that triumphant day you could finally reach the top shelf in the pantry. You know, physical growth is easy to see.

Jennifer Rothschild: Yeah.

Laura Johnson: It's tangible, undeniable. But spiritual growth, that's just harder. It's more elusive. It's harder to see. Frankly, sometimes it's just easily ignored. We're just so busy in life.

So, that's where I think a prayer journal becomes like a mirror. It's like a tool reflecting how our trust in God is growing. It becomes a place to record and reflect on and recall God's goodness in our lives. It helps us see those moments when -- like me standing on my tiptoes looking in that mirror. It helps us see when our faith is stretching higher or when our connection to God is deepening and really when his fingerprints in our lives become undeniably evident.

Jennifer Rothschild: Yeah. Wow! Well, I love that picture because we can all relate to it. And you're right, sometimes growth is so subtle when it's spiritual that we don't recognize it and we can feel defeated or we can feel like God's not doing anything but to look at the tangible results in a prayer journal can encourage us.

Laura Johnson: Yes.

Jennifer Rothschild: And so that's what I would want to hear your voice on. There's somebody listening right now, and they're like, "Prayer, that's beautiful for her. But prayer is so defeating for me because I never see any movement. I never know if God's really hearing me. I'm just depressed about prayer." So what would you tell that person who's feeling -- they trust God, they love God, but prayer just feels like a drudgery because it feels like it gains nothing in their life.

Laura Johnson: Yes. Some of my most precious prayer journals come from seasons of waiting in our lives. Seasons of places where I didn't want to be -- I wanted be somewhere else in life -- where I thought that my situation would never change. And honestly, where I felt like God didn't see me. Times when I questioned his love, times when I questioned that I even mattered to him. And even when we can't put words to it, he can interpret the ache of our hearts.

Jennifer Rothschild: Yeah.

Laura Johnson: I think when we jot down our hopes and our heartaches, it helps us remember his faithfulness when answers are delayed or our faith is just stretching too thin. I think sometimes we can't see it in the moment. It's years later where we see what God was doing. We wanted to hit the eject button, but God kept us in a place where maybe we didn't want to be. And it's only by looking back that we can see what he was doing in our lives. The beauty that he was creating in us just in hanging on.

Jennifer Rothschild: Yeah, just in doing it. What I hear you saying is you just pray anyway. You just do it and recognize that God is moving even if you can't see it right now.

Laura Johnson: That's right. I think there is something to just jotting down our prayers because it says, "God, I know you hear me. I know you care. I know you're at work, even if I can't see it yet." I think that's a testament to our faith. And even just our honesty, "Lord, I don't want to be in this situation. I want you to take me out, and I want my breakthrough, but I'm still here, but I believe that you hear me. I believe that you care." I think there is something very powerful about that. And over time, we see the evidence of our faith growing.

Jennifer Rothschild: Yeah. Well, I mean, and there is that all throughout the Old Testament, that concept of remembering the works of the Lord. And we're forgetful people, Laura.

Laura Johnson: We are.

Jennifer Rothschild: And so writing it down helps us to remember. And so here's my last question then for you. Would you ever let anybody else read your prayer journals?

Laura Johnson: (Laughs) I tease my family that they'll never be able to read my handwriting.

Jennifer Rothschild: There you go.

Laura Johnson: But I've told my husband, "If the house were to ever burn down, get the prayer journals." Because there is something special about those conversations with God. It's my written record of faith and doubting, of times of joy and heartbreak, seasons of clarity and lots of moments of doubt. It's that journey of faith where you can't understand, and then sometimes you see things more clearly. You might not be able to read my handwriting...

Jennifer Rothschild: ...but there's still precious words.

Laura Johnson: That's right.

Jennifer Rothschild: And all the while, it's steadfastness. I love that. Why don't you just -- before we go -- read that verse one more time from Colossians?

Laura Johnson: Absolutely. This is in the English standard version, "Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving."

Jennifer Rothschild: Amen.

[END OF INTERVIEW]

Well, I thought it was fun. I hope you felt like you were just sitting there at the creamery with us at the table, just listening to Laura and I talk about what it means to prayer journal. If you've never done it before, even if you don't get Laura's particular prayer journal, any spiral notebook will do. The point is for you just to connect with God in a prayer that works for you because Philippians 4:6 says in the New Living translation, "Don't worry about anything, but instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need and thank him for what he's done."

That's really the element of what it means to do a prayer journal. It's just to trust God with the things you're worried about. Tell him what concerns you, and then pray about those things, ask him to help, and then thank him for what he's done.

Well, I hope you have a great rest of your week, and I'm glad we got to hang out for just a little while together. Be back with us for our regularly scheduled episode coming up in just a couple of days. Until then, you know what I'm going to say... Whatever you face, however you feel, you know it -- you can do all things through Christ to give you strength.

And also, by the way, I'll have all the links you need to Laura Johnson's prayer journal and to the College of the Ozarks, in case you want to learn more at the show notes. So you'll just go to 413podcast.com/prayer.