My journey this week returns to a column I wrote on July 26, 2020, where I introduced the subject of keeping a journal with emphasis on the pandemic. Fast forwarding to today, we are still dealing with the pandemic. I want to suggest again that everyone record their life stories in log or diary format. Journaling is a personal record of occurrences, experiences and reflections kept on a regular basis. If one will record life-force events, before memories fade or are forgotten, through the craft of writing, a record of your values and priorities will be produced.
For example, when you first heard about the pandemic entering the United States, did you buy up toilet paper and other supplies the press said were in short supply? Did you start wearing a face mask? Did you social distance? Did you seek information on how to become vaccinated? Were you fearful? Do you recall when the pandemic became a politicized event?
The pandemic brought the unemployment of friends and family. It delayed weddings and funerals. Schools struggled to keep students engaged through classes online and some higher learning institutions shut down completely. Remember how our daily routines were affected? We started “Zooming” church and online meetings.
Then, prior to the spread of the “D” variant of COVID, recall how happy the world felt about being “back to normal.” By keeping a journal, one records details about how the pandemic has nudged world views. We need to keep honest accounts day by day because if one focuses only on either the plus (Blessings) or the minus (Failures) of life, our future readers do not see the whole picture of what life was like for us.
Finally, always record the date and location when you journal and include what was the most important event that happened that day. If you can, list daily what your closest moment was with the Lord. Joel 1:3 (NIV) “Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation.” The NIV Life Application Bible’s Commentary said, “God urged parents to pass their history down to the children, telling over and over the important lessons they learned. One of the greatest gifts you can give younger people is your life’s story to help them repeat your successes and avoid your mistakes.” May what we do with our lives reflect in our writing that Christ in-dwelled our days.
