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Lent is a time of meditation on the sacrifice Jesus made for us at Easter. Maybe it’s a season you haven’t given much time or attention to in the past, but you want to start this year and make the most of this time of repentance and reflection. Or maybe you want to try something new this year. Either way, you may be wondering how to incorporate reading, writing, and truly meditating on God’s Word during this season.
Journal Through the Gospels During Easter
Where do you start?
The gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) are the best books to focus on during Lent because they tell the story of the Jesus — His birth, life, ministry, crucifixion, and resurrection.
What should you read?
Journal Through the Gospels for Easter with The Gospels and Acts: NET Abide Bible Journals Box Set.
What will you get?
FREE exclusively at FaithGateway: Get a 40 Days through the Gospels Reading Plan & Easter Experience Journaling Prompts with the purchase of every box set!
The free reading plan will include what passages to read through the Easter season with breaks on Sundays. (Emailed to you after purchase.)
What are the Benefits of Journaling through the Gospels during Easter?
Reading and journaling through books of the Bible has so many benefits! It can
- help you grow your understanding and appreciation of the life and teachings of Christ Jesus. Writing down your thoughts and reflections will help you digest and remember the text and keep it in your heart.
- inspire you to think about Christ’s life and how it reflects upon your own.
- remind you of His love. The Holy Spirit will speak to you in a personal way about God’s great love for you shown in bodily form by Jesus.
- encourage you to turn away from anything in your life that misses the mark of holiness (being set apart for Him) that we are called to in Jesus Christ. — What needs to go?
- show you what areas you need to grow in your faith and Christian walk. — What needs to grow?
- keep you engaged. It’s easy to read the Bible and get distracted mentally and not really take everything in. Journaling causes you to meditate upon and respond in a personal, in-depth way.
- help you share Christ with a friend. Partner up with someone you know who is curious about Jesus and talk on a regular basis about what you’re learning through journaling through the gospels.
Once you get started, take notes on key passages and reflect on how they relate to you personally, to your life, your marriage or relationship, friendships, work, community, and faith. Write down questions you have about Jesus’ life, His teachings, what He’s saying to you. Write down new insights, new learnings, new understandings.
Sometimes, we can read a chapter or a story that we’ve read time and time again, but reading it again we learn something completely new, or have an entirely different perspective on it. We learn from the Apostle Paul that the Word of God is alive and active (Hebrews 4:12) so the Holy Spirit can speak into us in new ways from something we learned a long time ago!
For verses that really jump off the page, you can write them on 3x5 cards and memorize them driving them further into your daily life. If you’re struggling in a certain area of your life, you might want to write down verses that pertain to that area such as forgiveness, compassion, repentance (well-suited for Lent!), or people Jesus encountered who needed a miracle. You may find passages that you know the Lord is inspiring you to share with a friend or family member who is going through a particular crisis. Go for it!
Journaling helps you see connections between the Word and your own personal life. You can’t help it! When you read about Jesus’ life, envision his travels, conversations, and controversial teachings, you can’t help but wonder what He might say or do directly to you. Ask Him and record what you think He’s saying! The Holy Spirit will inspire you through the Bible readings to lean in to His voice. You might ask questions like:
- How does this passage apply to my life today?
- What is God speaking to me about?
- How is my heart affected by the reading?
- Do I feel resistance in my spirit? Uncomfortable? Challenged?
Journaling may be a new spiritual practice for you. That’s great! It will draw you closer to the throne of God and encourage you as you become more like Jesus and more into the person He’s creating you to be.
Keep it up and you’ll have a record of your spiritual journey and transformation!
Don’t let this Easter season pass by without diving into journaling through the gospels. Even if you start late or miss a day (or two or three), keep going! You can always continue after Easter. There’s no rule book here. Just keep going.
You may decide to give something up for Lenten such as fasting one meal a day, or giving up eating chocolate, or drinking wine, or spending time on social media. That’s wonderful! It’ll only increase your attention to God’s Word and His inspiration during this season.
RELATED ARTICLES
What Is Lent? (Source: Bible Gateway)
Check out studies on the life of Jesus. (Source: Study Gateway)
Watch the Video for the NET Abide Bible Journals
And a review of the box sets:
