A Disorganized Mind

Have you ever thought that was your problem? If you’re like me, you blame your busyness and tardiness on ‘too much to do’. To actually take responsibility for it would simply be overwhelming. Many, many years ago I began journaling and it was the beginning of organizing my mind! I didn’t attribute the simple task of putting words to paper as an answer to my physical disorganization, but it became apparent when I STOPPED journaling. My mind became ‘cluttered’ again and it spilled over into my daily activities. I am more convinced than ever that my day needs to start by ‘organizing my mind’ and that means journaling my thoughts and my prayers and seeing my desires and fears laid out on paper. Socrates said that the 'unexamined life is not worth living'. Examining my ‘cluttered’ mind helps me to put my thoughts straight first thing in the morning and then I can handle all my ‘tasks’ as they come along. I have a jump on the day as I talk to God about people who may cross my path, time scheduling, money problems, health issues, relationships …on and on. By writing it all down, I am able to release my prayers to God, and not ruminate over them all day. Bill Hybels book, “Too Busy Not to Pray” helped me ‘organized’ my prayer life, my journaling and my ‘cluttered mind’. He suggested the following format. I write the following letters in the margin of my page. He suggested that I limit my prayers to one page:
Y- ‘Yesterday’. I write several sentences about yesterday, including how God worked in my life.
A – ‘Adoration’. I recall who God is, what he has revealed to me about Himself and I write a few sentences of praise and adoration about God. It focuses my mind on the great privilege of praying to the God of the Universe, my Savior, my Creator, the Good Shepherd, the Prince of Peace.
C – ‘Confession’. This is when I ask God to ‘search me and know my heart’. I ask Him to reveal any sins I am concealing in my mind. Attitudes, grudges, fears, and all the other bad thoughts that keep my mind from being open to the truth.
T – ‘Thanksgiving’. A few sentences of counting my blessings is the best way to bring out the best in my mind. To write out current things I am thankful for opens up a healthy stream of mental pictures.
S – ‘Supplication’ . Here I write out my prayers for others, often rotating them through out the week.
L – ‘Listen and Learn’ I stop after writing out my supplication prayers and read a portion from the Bible. I read slowly, actively looking for what God wants me to learn that day. I might find a word like ‘peace’, ‘forgive’, or ‘blessed is the
(wo)man who trusts in You’. What I write here, I try to take with me for the day. It is the ‘bar’ in which I hang my thoughts on and tend to return to through out the day as my mind begins to get ‘cluttered’ again.
This technique is taught in different ways, but it is the RESULT that I share with you today. It changed my prayer life, it organized my mind and eventually it has affected every area of my life.
As you spring clean, include the crevices of your mind.