Your Free Prayer Journal Templates For The New Year

Prayer journal ideas

We often desire to spend more time in prayer with our Heavenly Father, but the busyness of life can get in the way.

Many people find prayer journalling a helpful way of finding time to listen to God and share our burdens with Him. Keeping a prayer journal can remind us how God is faithful as He answers our requests over time.

Because we’re passionate about the power of prayer, we’ve developed a collection of free prayer journal templates to encourage you in your prayer life as we head into a new year.

How to start a prayer journal?

1. Find somewhere quiet

Prayer journalling is a great way to escape the hecticness of life. Find a quiet space away from distractions to help you focus.

2. Begin your prayer journalling time in prayer

Before you start writing, take a moment to pray and invite God to speak to you.

3. Root your prayer journalling in the truth of God’s word

Take time delving into a Bible passage to help you remember how great our God is. Remind yourself about what the Bible says about the power of prayer. You may find our collection of encouraging Bible verses helpful as you start out. Fill in the scripture box on your chosen prayer journal template to record the Bible passages you’ve chosen to focus on.

4. Date your prayer journalling

By dating your prayer journalling sessions, you’ll be able to look back at how God has been faithful over time.

5. Remember to be thankful as you journal

Each of our prayer journal templates has a section for you to give thanks to God and rejoice in His provision. I’ve found this particularly helpful as each day it encourages me to lift my eyes away from my own circumstances and to my Heavenly Father.

6. Take time to record answers to prayers

So often, I forget what I’ve prayed for, and I don’t notice when God answers. Prayer journalling means you can look back over the past month or six weeks and note down how God has moved in different situations in your life. Recording answers to my prayers has built my faith as I’ve seen God move and bring change.

Free prayer journal templates

We've created three stunning prayer journal templates for you to download, print and use in your journalling.

Remarkable answers to prayer and Compassion

Reading stories of answers to prayer can also build our faith and remind us of God’s faithfulness. We’ve collected some of our favourite stories from 2018 from children around the world. These kids have prayed during tough situations and seen God’s breakthrough.

They've been empowered thanks to someone answering the call to sponsor a child and bring hope.

Be encouraged that God is also able to bring change to your situation as you read these short testimonies:

Rihanata recovers from life-threatening burns

Rihanata, from Burkina Faso, loved running and playing outside with her cousins. Her grandmother would set up a small iron furnace to cook in front of the house, as there was no kitchen indoors.

One day, Rihanata tripped. She fell on the furnace, spilling scalding sauce all over her skin.

“It was so very painful I can hardly describe how I felt,” she says. “I found myself in hospital with bandages around my chest, arms, legs and face that had been burned by that hot sauce.”

Rihanata was taken to hospital in the capital, Ouagadougou, but her family couldn’t afford to pay for her care. All they could do was lift their request to God and trust in His provision.

The family rejoiced when they discovered that the local church’s partnership with Compassion meant they could pay for Rihanata’s medical expenses.

Throughout her 15-month stay in hospital, Rihanata amazed doctors with her faith and fast recovery. Testifying to an answer to prayer, she says, “I believe it was God who healed me. Now I feel good without pain. Everything is back to normal, even if I do keep the scars on my body.”

Adun’s testimony of being rescued from the Thai cave

14-year-old Adun was one of the 12 Thai teenagers who captured hearts across the world this summer when they became stranded in Tham Luang Cave in northern Thailand.

During a special church service following the Thai cave rescue, Adun has shared how he prayed persistently during the terrifying two week ordeal.

“During the tenth night, we were losing patience, hope, physical energy and courage. We could not do anything to help. The only thing I could do was pray ...

“I prayed ‘Lord, I’m only a boy; you are almighty God, you are holy, and you are powerful. Right now I can’t do anything; may you protect us. Come to help all thirteen of us.’ And then I finished my prayer, thanking God for everything that happened to myself and my friends … all thirteen of us.

God answered and in a remarkable rescue effort, Adun, his friends and his football coach were freed from the cave. Adun gives God all the glory.

"Thank you to everybody who prayed for me and the whole team,” Adun says. “Thank you to everybody that helped us, and the last thank you [goes] to the Lord: thank you God. God bless you all.”.

You may also be interested in:

•   Modern Day Miracles: Stories of healing and hope