The Dumb Thing About a Daily Devotional
Do you keep a daily devotional? Have you been keeping a journal of your thoughts, feelings and ideas? Or are you like me, and cannot be bothered with that mess? Well, I can pretty much sum up why.
1. Daily devotionals are a waste of time and money.
Yeah, I know what you're thinking... you're thinking I lack discipline and time management skills. But who can be bothered for 30mins to an hour to sit around and try to churn out thoughts and ideas, especially if your idea vault or thought tanks are empty? I can think of so many other productive things to do.
2. Daily devotionals prove that you cannot come up with your own style of journaling.
Here's the thing: if I am a creative, I should be able to do my own daily devotional. But with this statement, we're back to the waste of time point. It takes way too much time to come up with your own daily devotional. And like I said before, I could be doing something else way more productive.
3. Daily devotionals make you seem weak, fragile and immature.
The following statement is where my Type 8 really comes out: I will not admit that I need help when it comes to something so seemingly trivial as a daily devotional. And if I really needed to do one, I would have created my own devotional by now...
Top 5 Reasons Why I Do Daily Devotionals Anyway
There is still a part of me that really loathes trying to do something so crazy consistent, like a daily devotional. But I have to admit that I'm probably the reason that they're dumb. And despite my efforts of trying to avoid them at any chance I get, I realize that I NEED CHANGE MY ATTITUDE and do them anyway. Here is why:
1. A daily devotional helps ground me.
My life always seems to careen crazily out of control when I don't have a consistent outlet. On the other hand, trying to be consistent creatively can become extremely unhealthy when it's the very same thing day in and day out. I have made it a goal in recent years to drastically change what a daily devotional looks like for me for my emotional, spiritual and creative mind's sake.
Simply put, I don't do the very same thing every day, but I do get after it every day. I might read scripture one day and pray for someone the next. The day after might be a mental exercise, usually listing on a topic. Then, the next day will be a drawing about how I feel upon waking up. I love variety and I implement that into my daily devotional time. The only consistent thing about all of it is that I bring God into my illustrating, prayer and random musings.
2. A daily devotional helps organize my life.
I am the most disorganized organized person I know. I can remember all kinds of dates, numbers, and things I need to get done, but my living room is a mess and the dishes need to be washed.
Dude... we just need to buy new dishes........ Haha! I'm kidding. But seriously.
When I am getting my thoughts and feelings out, it creates space for me. I can't explain how, but I tend to have a much more forgiving and restful environment when I am consistently doing a devotional. It's almost as if when I organize my thoughts, that manifests somehow in my environment. It's pretty liberating and awesome when I think about it!
3. A daily devotional helps me detox.
This one is simple: a daily devotional helps me get my junk out. Earlier when I was talking about "random musings", that is just a glorified way for me to say verbal vomit. Let's be honest... Type 8s don't speak in sunshine and daisies. When I am being myself, I'm blunt with a touch of indecency. And for my daily devotional time, I allow that attitude to shine. I need to get rid of that crud that gums up my emotional intelligence. If I don't, I'll end up letting it loose like the Hound of the Baskervilles on some poor, innocent soul. And let's face it... I wouldn't have many friends if that happened often. I want to get better at communicating, and a daily devotional helps me to find my voice and to let go of toxic thoughts.
4. A daily devotional gives me inspiration.
As I've said before, we are each created for a unique purpose, and God perfected us for that purpose. It has become undeniable in my life, and a daily devotional has helped me tremendously to find out how through my narrative. Countless journals, blogs and sketchbooks pour out a story that I will cherish because it is MINE. Your story is the only thing no one will be able to take from you. It is highly important that you stay present for it, and that you preserve that by documenting it. I cannot tell you how many times I have been inspired by the writings and drawings I have revisited.
"Your story is the only thing no one will be able to take from you."
5. A daily devotional keeps me focused on goals.
Goals, goals, goals, goals.... Goals I do adore...
I love setting goals; this is a very recent development. I used to roll my eyes when people started talking about S.M.A.R.T. Goals, New Year's Goals, and Business Goals. But then I realized something about myself... it wasn't the goals I didn't like, it was the state of my life at the time. I was in a funk of sorts, and I honestly didn't have any direction for anything I was doing. I enjoyed being in the present too much.
In recent years, my perspective shifted, and I have started this practice: I am thinking and planning for the future, but I am also still trying to stay very much in the present. When I listed my goals and put this new perspective into action, something pretty supernatural happened. When I looked at my Goals List again near the end of the year, all except one of my goals were complete, and that last goal would be complete by the end of the year!
WOW!
The only way that I can explain it is that when I include things like goals in my daily devotional, then I stay in the present, and I can read about them in the future so that they still stay present. I know that sounds like crazy-talk, but I would challenge you to try it. You might surprise yourself.
Practice Makes Better
If you start to practice keeping a daily devotional, I believe you will see one of the most awesome shifts you can witness in your lifetime. This has been my experience, and I firmly believe and urge every creative to do it. It seems trivial, dumb, and a waste of time, but the benefits to doing something like this are too great to overlook. I used to suffer from creative block, and it would drive me into a deep depression. When I made the connection, and started keeping my daily devotional more regularly, it changed my world for good. I know it will bless you, too!
Before you go...
Let me know in the comments what you are taking away from this post! You may also comment or email hello@creatorfollowing.com if you are already keeping a daily devotional, and how that looks for you. I would love to be further inspired by some of the things you already put into practice to lead a fulfilling creative life!