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No, not the Wall Street Journal. 

When it comes to our spiritual life, 'journaling' or keeping a journal can take on many forms.  So you can do one or more or combine several purposes into a single journal.  Journals are kept for many purposes, including:

• Prayer journal: simply keeping track of what you are praying about and / or need to pray about.  For some, it may take the form of a to-do list, while others may recording prayers and thoughts after the fact.  And there are many apps available to both keep track of prayer needs and to remind you - just search for "prayer journal" at the app store.

• Bible Study journal: recording thoughts, questions, note and more as you study the Bible.  Some prefer to make their notes directly in their Bible, though space may be limited.  'Journaling Bibles' are available which allow plenty of space for your notes.

• Devotional journal.  If you do daily devotions, you might want to record your thoughts and insights.  Some devotionals come with a journal built in.

• General purpose journal: In the old days, we called this keeping a diary.  Journaling sounds more impressive. 

• Spiritual journal:  what is this?  It probably falls in the category of general purpose and may include any or all of the above and more.  Entire books have been written on the subject, but the important thing is not to feel obliged to follow someone else's rules.  Go with something that works for you.

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But just in case, here are some resources:

Spiritual Journaling for Christian Growth and Transformation - There is a lot here.  Whats. Hows.  Whys.  If you asking yourself "Why would I want to start a journal?" this is the place to go.

How to Keep a Spiritual Journal - In seven easy steps, no less.  This article has the virtue of not only suggesting how to keep a journal, but also what to do with it once you have it!

Six Beginner Tips for Writing a Spiritual Journal - I always love tips since you can just take advantage of the ones you find useful and ignore the others.  This article also has links to a much more detailed series on journaling.

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Often Bible software allows for taking notes and journaling.  I use Logos (very expensive).  It allows me to keep any number of journals, notes of all kinds, and to attache them to Scripture references (or anything else).  I can also tag them in order to make finding particular entries much easier down the road.  And since data is stored in the cloud, I can access my journals and notes pretty much anywhere, anytime.I will be creating a Logos page in the not too distant future (from 02/19/21).

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