I had my oldest two boys start journaling as a part of their school day this morning.  As you can imagine, my plan was met with mostly negative reviews.  To illustrate why I feel writing down thoughts is important, I got out my “journal” file folder from high school, hoping to inspire them.

I randomly started reading entries out loud.  When I stumbled upon the one where I talked about my two favorite Scripture passages, I decided that would be a good one to share with my kids.  While in the middle of reading , I almost started to cry.  Here is an excerpt.

I like Psalm 1 … My favorite verse in the chapter is verse 3 because it reminds me that I need to have a life of impact.  I need to be productive and realize that trials make me tougher.  True fulfillment comes when I am firmly planted and into the word of God.

Now just in case that is not a familiar passage, here are verses 2 and 3 in that chapter …

But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
And in His law he meditates day and night. ³ He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water,
Which yields its fruit in its season
And its leaf does not wither;
And in whatever he does, he prospers.

Fast forward almost a decade.  I had a feeling my boyfriend was getting ready to propose, but I was not sure when the big moment would happen.  After a dinner out one night, we went for a random walk in a park we had never visited before .  Suddenly he came to a stop under a big tree that was standing strong in the middle by itself.

A picture of the tree graces our bedroom wall.  Sorry for the picture of a picture, but this was before the digital age.  Guess I am getting that old! 🙂

Anyway, he got down on one knee and told me that he wanted our life to be like the verse in Psalm 1:3 – that he wanted us to be planted with deep roots in God’s Word.  That sentiment started his marriage proposal.  This thought has continued to be important to both of us as we have been married raising a family together for the past almost 14 years.

I did not remember writing about Psalm 1 in high school.  Only God knew that He would literally bring that verse to fruition several years later.  If I had not been “forced” to write down my thoughts, I would have missed this unexpected connection.  The testimony of God being faithful to His Words.  So boys, your protests of writing are definitely falling on deaf ears now.  You’ll thank me later?