My Guided Journal Recommendations
Did you know that journaling has been proven to reduce anxiety, ease stress and improve your overall wellbeing?
Getting lost in the pages of a journal is a great place to connect with God, reflect, goal plan, unpack your thoughts and feelings, and even pray.
Journaling for me has always been a quiet place of running to God when prayers spoken aloud feel too heavy. It’s been a place of reflecting on God’s goodness in my life, dreaming, worrying, crying out, and so much more.
If journaling has never been your thing, fear not, because today’s post isn’t just for the seasoned journalers. Today, I want to talk about guided journals and why I think even novice journalers would benefit from one.
A guided journal is less intimidating than a regular journal because it isn’t just filled with blank pages. A guided journal includes prompts, instructions, and pre-filled pages that invite the journaler to fully engage with whatever the intent of the journal is.
There are many different types of guided journals. In fact, you could probably find a guided journal for just about anything you’re interested in!
Some of the guided journals I’ll be listing today can help you goal plan, connect with God, study the Bible, read more books, and track your gratitude.
Despite the many different types, shapes, and sizes, the overall goal of a guided journal — in my opinion — is to help you grow by tracking your growth.
So if you’re wanting to dive into journaling this year, or you’re a seasoned journaler looking to go deeper, check out the list below of my top 7 favorite guided journals.
My Guided Journal Recommendations
My Reading Life: A Book Journal by Anne Bogel
This is a wonderful guided journal for those who love to read or for those who are wanting to prioritize reading. It’s meant to be an annual journal that tracks your reading life over the span of one year.
Anne Bogel’s Book Journal includes:
- instructions on how to use the journal
- space to create a “to be read list”
- space to log the books you are currently reading
- the ability to track your reading habits
- space to record favorite quotes and books throughout the year
- the ability to choose your next right book from the many different reading lists Anne includes in the journal
I love this guided journal because it gets me excited about reading! It’s a wonderful companion for those wanting to hit pause on Netflix this year and pick up more books.
The Next Right Thing Guided Journal by Emily P. Freeman
The Next Right Thing guided journal is a wonderful tool for reflection. Emily created it as a way to “listen to your life” and record the happenings of each week, month, and year. Like Anne’s Book Journal, this guided journal is meant to be used over the span of a single year.
The guided journal begins by having you list what season you’re in (fall, winter, summer, spring), what you’re anticipating for that season, and then transitions to monthly reflection for the current month you’re in.
What’s great about this guided journal is that you don’t have to start it at the beginning of the year, you can begin in whatever season you find yourself in!
The Next Right Thing Guided Journal includes:
- instructions on how to use the journal and its purspose
- a ‘these are the days of’ section for each week out of the month to list what’s going on in your life that week
- a place to list what is draining you and what’s giving you life that month
- space for gratitude
- space to list the questions you’re carrying that month
- an ‘arrows’ section where you can record any answers or nudges in the right direction that you received regarding your questions
- a section for fun where you list what you’re watching, listening to, making, etc.
- a monthly practice that will differ month to month
I get so much use out of this journal and it was especially helpful to not have to scramble at the end of the year to recall what I learned, what worked, and what didn’t at the start of the new year.
For anyone wanting to make reflection a regular rhythm in their life, I highly recommend this journal!
Tending by the Word: a daily Scripture journal by Mariel Davenport
TEND is a 4 letter acronym created by author and writer Mariel Davenport to help you connect with God through the Word. This journal doesn’t just have to be used annually, but can be used whenever you want throughout each year!
The TEND method is a wonderful way to meditate on God’s Word, truly take time to understand its meaning, and then apply it to your life. Tending by the Word includes:
- instructions on the TEND method and how to use it
- pages to tend your chosen scriptures and execute the TEND method
The TEND method changed the way I read Scripture by showing me how to really connect intimately with God through the Bible. For those looking for a fresh take on how to read Scripture and incorporate it into their daily lives, this is a great resource for you!
Journey into Joy: Cultivating a Heart of Gratitude and Worship by Jazmin N. Frank
Journey into Joy is an annual gratitude and joy tracker. This journal is for anyone looking to specifically target gratitude and incorporate it as a daily practice throughout the year.
Journey into Joy includes:
- instructions on how to use the journal
- a ‘joy inventory’ where you can be honest about where you are in your joy journey at the beginning of the year
- blank spaces within each month to list things that brought you joy or that you’re grateful for
- a ‘meditate and memorize’ section at the end of each month that includes a memory verse and reflection questions about your joy journey
- year end reflection
It amazed me how intentional I became in looking for the gift of joy when I started using this journal!
The Marriage Journal by Audrey & Jeremy Roloff
My husband and I decided this year that we want to intentionally focus on growing our marriage. Amidst the hustle and bustle of everyday life distractions, the priority of our marriages can easily fall to the wayside.
That’s why The Marriage Journal is a wonderful guided journal for those who want to prioritize connection and communication with their spouse. This guided journal is useful for newlyweds and those who have been married for 50 years!
The Marriage Journal includes:
- introduction and instructions on how to use the journal
- weekly devotional readings
- calendar space to communicate and plan the events of your week together
- reflection questions on joy, prayer requests, dreams, hurts, etc.
- monthly reflection questions
The Marriage Journal is meant to be used weekly, with your spouse. My husband and I sit down every Sunday evening to reflect on the past week and plan ahead for the next week.
Knowing God Through the Word: a Guided Scripture Journal by Mariel Davenport & Eva Kubasiak
Knowing God Through the Word is another great Bible reading resource that doubles as a guided journal! It’s an annual guided journal that provides you with the following:
- instructions on how to use the journal
- a one year Bible reading plan so you can read the entire Bible in a year in chronological order
- blank spaces for each reading day to record a verse that stuck out the most to you
- a break down of each book of the Bible in the back of the journal
This journal is probably the most well-loved (and beat up) guided journal I own! I flip through it almost daily during my quiet time and I have loved being able to read through the entire Bible in a year.
Growth Notes by Growth Roots Co.
The Growth Book from Growth Roots Co. is a new guided journal find for me this year! It was actually gifted to me by my mom, who stumbled upon it in an Ann Voskamp blog post. (Yes, Ann Voskamp uses and approves this journal!)
The very first morning I sat down to open it, it took up my entire quiet time. I am obsessed and this will be a guided journal that I purchase every year. It’s meant to be a way to connect with God and track your personal and spiritual growth.
The Growth Book includes:
- a prayer card telling you someone prayed over your journal and the date they prayed over it
- pages to record your God-sized dreams for the year
- blank journal pages to take notes, process how you’re feeling, or talk to God
- study topics session to track what you study spiritually
- prayer section to record prayer requests and answered prayers
- God’s faithfulness section to record where God has been faithful in your life that year
- book record section where you can write down the books you’re reading for the year
- Bible reading checklist with all the books of the Bible included so you can track what you read that year
- monthly reflection add-ins to reflect on the previous month as you begin a new month
The Growth Book I linked for you above is their black leather journal, and that’s the one I use. However, there are other colors to choose from!
This is definitely a new favorite of mine and meant to be used as a tool to record your written spiritual legacy.
A Blessing for the Journalers
May your journal be a safe place to grow, process, reflect and connect with God and yourself.
As you put pen to paper, may God gently uncover your deepest longings and dreams.
May you find clarity and wisdom for all of your next right steps.
May you find a holy peace in the letting go of your fears and worries.
And may you remember that grace carries you, always.
xo,
Journaling has really never
been the thing for me,
but in cancer’s heavy weather,
windward to eternity,
I wonder if I’ve lost my place,
not keeping what had gone before,
turning what was knowledge-grace
into a shut and bolted door?
Would I find safe grounding
had I but tried to understand?
Alas, my lead-weight sounding
shows a fell approaching land
which reef-passage could be seen
were I not what I have been.