Gratitude Journal Ideas and What to Write in One
Are you looking for gratitude journal ideas? One of the most effective ways to remain positive and encouraged is by practicing gratitude. A gratitude journal is a great way to do this because it guides you in recognizing what you have in your life, instead of focusing on what you don’t have. Today I am going to share some great tips on how to start a gratitude journal that will help you live more positively!
What is a gratitude journal?
A gratitude journal is a great way to start your day off on the right foot. Being intentional to start the day off with gratitude is such a healthy habit to create. Studies show that individuals who keep a daily gratitude journal are more likely to be happy and healthier than those who don’t!
Essentially, a gratitude journal is a journal in which you literally write out what you are grateful for every day. The purpose of this is to take you out of a negative mindset and move you towards positivity.
Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report, if there be any virtue and if there be any praise, think on these things.
Philippians 4:8
How to Start a Gratitude Journal
There are tons of ways that people keep their journals, but here are some great Gratitude Journal Ideas to get you started:
1. Decide where you want to write out your daily gratitude list
Now, this doesn’t have to be an enormous expense. You can head down to your favorite store (or browse your favorite online store) to find an adorable journal to write in, but you can just as easily stay home and decide to write in an app on your phone instead.
It’s all up to you. Do you like digital writing and planning or are you more of a paper and pen type of gal? I enjoy both.
Some popular options include: the notes app on your phone, a decorative journal or notebook, sticky notes, a plain piece of paper and folder, or even a fun journaling app. Or grab my printable gratitude journal – CLICK HERE.
2. Decide when you want to write your list
Most people who are just learning how to start a gratitude journal choose to write their gratitude lists first thing in the morning, alongside their prayer/bible reading time, to jumpstart the day, but it is equally beneficial to close out the day with what you were grateful for.
Ideally, you want your gratitude journal to fit into your life naturally because if it doesn’t, you might not remember to actually write it down! So look at your daily routine and decide where daily gratitude journaling will best fit in to make it more of a regular thing.
3. Decide what you want to write
There are quite a few ways you can go about writing in your journal when you are learning how to start a gratitude journal.
You can keep it simple and simply jot down a few things you are grateful for in the moment, or you can expand on those and write down why you are grateful for them.
When my now ex-husband was deployed, we were told to write down 3 things we are grateful for every day to help keep our mindset and perspective on a positive note. It can be anything! The small simple things like FaceTime and internet to the bigger blessings of life.
Here is a huge list of gratitude journal ideas – CLICK HERE
Let’s dive in further.
What to Write in a Gratitude Journal
A great way to start your day is by writing down what you are grateful for. I like to add this to my prayer and Bible reading time. You all know I love scripture writing, so I like to jot down what I’m thankful for during this time as well.
What some people like to do every morning before starting their daily routine is pick out three things currently happening in their life that they are grateful for.
Some examples include:
- I am grateful for my kids because they make me laugh every day.
- I am grateful to have a roof over my head and a warm home.
- I am grateful that I could pay rent on time
- I am grateful I have free access to read God’s word and go to church
They can seriously be as simple as that!
However, gratitude journaling happens not only in the morning! Some like to write at random times throughout the day when they feel thankful for something or someone. It can be as simple as writing down that you are grateful for your cute shoes, but it also could include things such as:
- Today while walking through Target, I saw an old friend from high school who remembered me even though we hadn’t seen each other in years!
- While picking up my kids from school today, I ran into one of their teachers and she let me know how well my child was adjusting to school and it made my heart so happy!
- When we sat down for dinner tonight, my daughter decided to share with us something she was struggling with and I am so grateful to have created such a safe space for our kids!
- A dear friend dropped off some garden fresh vegetables from her backyard garden! What a blessing that she shared bounty with us!
Then one last idea would be to write your gratitude journal in the evening. For this option, you could jot down three to five things that happened during the day that you are grateful for, or even a few things happening the next day that you are grateful for.
Some examples could be:
- I am so grateful for our park playdate tomorrow
- I am so grateful for extra time with my kids tomorrow
- I am so grateful for a day off of work to rest and binge watch my favorite show tomorrow
- I am so grateful for my church family
- I am so grateful for God’s grace in my life
- I am so grateful for the family conversation we had this evening at the dinner table
It truly is up to what you want to write about daily within your gratitude journal – so get creative with how you will keep track of them all!
But one thing I would recommend when starting out with a gratitude journal is to start small for about a week or two of writing down things you are grateful for on a daily basis. This will help train your brain into thinking about all the amazing aspects of life we tend to forget sometimes! Remember, being creative does not have to mean going outside your comfort zone either. Just jot down some simple ideas each day while going about your regular routine.
The important thing is to set yourself up to be consistent with gratitude journaling. Your level of creativity is totally up to you.
Okay, but what about the benefits here?
Benefits of Daily Gratitude Journaling
There are many benefits of daily journaling, from increasing your overall happiness and even on your mental health and well-being. But one of the greatest benefits of journaling is developing a greater connection with yourself, seeing God’s blessings in your life and understanding of who you are.
Daily journaling can open up some conversations with yourself and God that wouldn’t have come up otherwise that will force you to look within and you might just surprise yourself with what you find.
Use this list of Bible Verses On Thankfulness to help you with your gratitude journal ideas.
By this point, you should be ready to decide on what journaling method you are going to use & how to start a gratitude journal and I hope I’ve given you enough ideas to get off on the right foot!
More Journaling Ideas You Will Enjoy
Simple Bible Journaling Ideas – Are you looking for simple bible journaling ideas, scripture writing ideas and prayer journaling ideas? I’m not very artistic but love the idea of bible journaling! This list will help everyone, even the least artistic, with the creative side of Bible journaling.
Coffee and Jesus Prayer Journal Printable – Looking for a prayer journal? Are you distracted in your prayer and bible study time? Are you needing a guided prayer journal to help you stay focused? Wanting to journal through those hard times, grieving, and anxiety?
10 Tools To Study The Bible For Busy Women – 10 tools to study the bible for the busy mom. You want to study the bible but need the resources at your fingertips to dive deeper into God’s word. Use one of these 10 tools to study the Bible.
10 Creative Ways To Spend Time With God – Spending time with God. One of the most important habits to form in our lives is spending time with God. Today, let’s choose to slow down. Calm the chaos. Let’s take a look at the rushing around that happens in our life and chose to set healthy boundaries and develop healthy habits in our lives. Habits that honor God and strengthen our relationship with Him.
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