Just last night I was reading through some of my journals. I absolutely love reading about my past experiences! Ever since I was 8 years old I've kept a journal, I can remember this because I got my first journal as a gift from my mother on the day I was baptised as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Now, I have not always been diligent at writing in my journal but enough that I am grateful for the memories that have been recorded so that I can look back on experiences that I've had. In one of my journals I wrote a quote on the first page so I could see and remember it every time I opened my journal at the time, I love this quote so much it is from Richard G. Scott of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, "Knowledge carefully recorded is knowledge available in time of need" (November Ensign, 1998). This has been one of the principles I live by. I think it is very important to know where you've been in your life, having it written down somewhere and being able look back to see the progress you've made in your life is such a great tool. Some days it takes more effort than others, but when you don't take the time out to record experiences you've had it's easy to forget.
I remember attending a YSA fireside, I can tell you the exact day and the circumstances surrounding it that discouraged me enough that I nearly didn't go, and that is all because I kept a journal. It was Wednesday the 27th of July 2011, Virginia Pearce and Sheri Dew were the speakers. Have you ever had that experience where you were in the right place at the right time and heard the exact thing that you needed to hear to help you through a situation? This night was one of those nights for me! That doesn't happen very often for me but I think my Father in Heaven knew that I needed extra help at that time. It seemed as if everything these women were saying was specifically for me. So many things said that night made such an impact on my life, but one thing that stood out to me was when she said that we need to record ALL experiences we have with deity. Now, seeing as I am a dedicated journal writer this was an important principle for me to improve on. I am always so grateful to have these experiences and memories written down, that I am able to look back on them and remember the feelings I had that day, remember the strength I received to overcome a trial and how my faith grew stronger through it.
As we go through life we have our struggles and we have our triumphs, both have great impact on our lives. It is crucial to our own personal progress that we keep a record of these things and could possibly help you when you happen to go through something similar in the years to come being able to look at how you dealt with it years before.
So, if you can't tell, keeping a journal is extremely important to me and I hope maybe this blog post aka journal entry will inspire some of you to put journal writing as a priority in you life. One day you will be grateful that you did I promise! :-D
