What Is a Life Journal and Why Your Kids Need One

A life journal will help your kids process life’s emotions and hurdles in the light of God’s truth.
Kick insecurities to the curb!

When I was in the 11th grade, the most horrific thing happened to me. We were 22 minutes into English class when I sneezed. Being a kid with extreme allergies, I never sneeze once. My sneezes always come in a three-pack. There’s absolutely nothing I can do. The other students in the class laughed as the sneezes fired in rapid succession.

My teacher tried to talk over the disruption, but by the third one, she angrily spat, “Get out of my class. Now. You can spend the rest of the hour in the hallway.”

The fiery red that burned my embarrassed cheeks as I walked out of the classroom that day is a memory I’ll never forget. To say I was embarrassed was a gross understatement. I felt like the laughing stock of the entire school.

Have you ever had a moment like that in life?

It only takes one such event to scar us in ways we don’t even realize. To this day, I apologize for every sneeze and even feel a little anxious that I can’t control them (even though I know that what the teacher did was cruel and wrong)!

Here’s the truth: life is full of struggles. People will say hurtful things. We will get embarrassed by something we did. Bullies will bully. Friends will wound. We know we can’t escape those things. Life will throw us hard circumstances. We must learn to navigate the feelings we face so we can overcome them—so we can live #NotConsumed.

I love the idea of my kids having a life journal to help them process life’s hurdles in the light of God’s truth.

1. A life journal helps you process big (and little) feelings

It’s crazy how a seemingly small thing can unexpectedly rock our world. It’s almost like we can feel the emotions boiling up inside. Our kids face those types of feelings as well—like when they receive a failing grade on a project or when their best friend moves to another state. One minute they may be handling it okay, and the next, not so much.

Feelings are REAL! It’s important that we help our kids acknowledge that their feelings are real and that God created us to feel things! It’s not a sin to feel an emotion. The problem is OUR RESPONSE!

Feelings are a slippery slope. What starts out as a weird look from a lady at the grocery store can avalanche into a narrative we tell ourselves about how ugly we are and how no one has ever loved us. It’s not just girls who do this either! My 14-year-old boy can avalanche into a nasty pity party faster than any girl I’ve seen!

Feelings are real, but they AREN’T RELIABLE! When we listen to our feelings and let them determine our path, we slide into trouble because emotions are driven by the heart, and the Bible says the heart is deceitful (Jeremiah 17:9).

A safe way to process your feelings is to get them down on paper. A life journal is a great place to record your thoughts. You’ll be amazed at how just writing things down helps you identify when you are reacting to feelings instead of truth.

2. A journal helps you filter through untrue thoughts

Speaking of TRUTH, do your kids realize that feelings most often DON’T tell the truth? That’s because our feelings are rooted in our hearts (Jeremiah 17:9) and can’t be trusted.

It’s CRITICAL that our kids learn to NEVER make a decision based on their feelings.

Why? Because feelings may tell you that you’re unlovable and will never add up. Feelings convince amazing people to do things like taking their own life because “no one will even miss me.” Feelings lie! But it’s not just feelings—the world lies, too.

Our kids are inundated with images, messages, and ideas about what they should look like, think like, and act like. It’s literally in every single thing they see, from billboards to commercials to YouTube ads to social media posts.

So what is true? John 17:17 says, “Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.”

Kids need to know that God’s Word never changes. His Word is the ultimate source of truth. All feelings should be sifted through the filter of what God says!

Using a life journal, kids can admit that feelings are real and then learn to stand on the RELIABLE truth of God’s Word instead of slipping down the slippery slope into a giant tub of “rocky-road” feelings.

3. A life journal helps you understand that God’s Word has the answers to your questions

Our kids have questions and a lot of them. Sometimes it seems as if their questions will never end. But I’ve learned that their questions are very real and very important at all stages of life. I’ve found that, as kids continue to grow and develop, so do their questions.

Now, instead of “Why is the sky blue?” their questions might sound more like, “Who am I?” “Do I have a purpose?” “Am I loved?”

These are important questions because the answer, and the source of the answer, can literally be a matter of life and death. When we answer life’s questions from the wrong source, we buy into lies about ourselves that cause great damage.

Kids need truth to help guide and direct their questions and snuff out any lies the world might present. A life journal is a great way to ask questions and seek the answers. My kids will often begin to process something and then come to me to discuss it!

In fact, the activities and application questions in a life journal might even bring up questions about God and truth they didn’t realize they had!

4. A life journal will help you learn to counsel yourself using the Bible

Kids are always looking for advice. They ask their friends about things. They look to movies to see how kids are acting. They look on social media for tips and ideas on responding to life situations. If we are being honest, we do this too!

Do your kids know that they can use the Bible to help seek counsel for life?

Thoughts and emotions continually boil up in our kids’ lives, and rather than bottling them up, they will get to sort them out and process them in light of truth. Instead of falling prey to lies, kids can learn the truth and walk in victory!

But remember that it’s a continual process. We need reminding. We need stories that inspire us to keep pressing on. We need a safe place to be real with our feelings that will still lead us right back to the truth about them.

5. It reminds you that your worth is based in Bible truth and not what others say

Sometimes well-meaning people say hurtful things to our kids, even family! Although we love and respect others, our kids need to know the truth for themselves, so they can identify when sweet Aunt Mildred (or the girl in history class) went a little too far with her comment.

They need to understand that God’s Word is the beginning and end of our self-worth and confidence. Our kids can be confident, not because of their own merit or what others tell them, but because Christ saved them and gave them His merit.

Whether it was from a grandma who was meaning well but said things that didn’t line up with what we believe, or from a friend who has never been to church and doesn’t know Jesus, our kids need to know where to turn when things don’t make sense. The My God Says Life Journal will help lead them and direct them toward God’s Word.

As they apply Scripture with journal prompts and activities found in each chapter, they will become more confident in identifying truth and using it in real-life situations. They will get to know God better as they learn to trust Him. Knowing the attributes of God changes everything— what God says about them is a result of who He is (not what they do or how they look)!

Everything I’ve mentioned above is available through the My God Says Life Journal for kids and teens. Kids will:

• Learn to process feelings
• Filter feelings through God’s Word to determine truth
• Understand that God’s Word has all of the answers they need
• Learn to counsel themselves with God’s Word
• Sort through comments made by others that don’t line up with truth

One of the most exciting benefits of this journal is that it also gives prompts to help kids reach out and share what and how God is teaching them. After all, sharing His truth with others is one of our greatest missions. And it’s a beautiful thing to witness our children doing just that.