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One thing in particular that I would recommend about this is that you personalize the Scripture when you write it in your journal.  Don't merely copy it out of the Bible.  That's just a schoolroom exercise.  If God has spoken to you from His Word, write it as if He actually spoke it out loud to you.  God speaks modern English when He talks to you, just like He speaks in Spanish to a believer in Mexico or in French to someone in France.  God does not use flowery poetic words full of "thee's" and "thou's" when He converses with you as a friend or precious child.  The type of words found in our Bibles is the manner of speaking that was common (ordinary!) when the Bible was translated.  Don't let the language of the Bible translation make you feel that God is so holy and distant that He talks funny.  This can be a dangerous unconscious feeling.  God meets with us where we are and He is as close as my own skin -- not far away in celestial realms.  There's nothing sacrilegious about writing God's words in your journal the way He would speak them to you out loud.  Just don't fall prey to reading your journal as if it were the Bible.  Go back to the Word when you read back through your journal again in weeks or months ahead.

After a couple years of recording just the Scripture in my journals I began gradually to expand into writing out what God had taught me, how it applied to my daily life and to write prayers to God.  Written prayers are just my thoughts, feelings and questions addressed to God on paper.  The purpose of writing prayers is not to read them to God as some religious exercise.  It is simply addressing my thoughts of the day to God in written form. 

On a practical note, I have found a few technical things that are helpful.   There are a variety of notebooks that you can use for a journal -- anything from a steno pad or cheap spiral bound notebook to bound blank books or three-ring binders.  I think I've used them all at some point or other.  Now I specifically purchase a type of journal that has hard board or heavy vinyl covers and a large, heavy weight spiral binding.  They can be found in some office supply stores, discount stores and department stores.  I use this one type exclusively for some very specific reasons.  Steno pads and cheap spiral bound notebooks fall apart with daily use, making them difficult to keep for a memorial.  Bound journals are difficult to write in because whether you are right or left handed, there's going to be one side of the page where the gutter gets in the way of writing.   They are just awkward for daily use.   Three-ring binders work well, but they are awkward to use if you are trying to write in your lap. 

The type of journal I use is pretty - the exteriors are usually decorative and I tend to try to find one that is meaningful to me at the time I buy it.   It's just a little thing but it's another part of the memorial for me.  For instance, the one I'm using right now has a little saying across the bottom of the pages that says, "Beautiful things happen to those who believe."  At the time I began this journal I was having a hard time believing the truth of how much God loved me and that He sees me as a beautiful creation He has made.  I knew it was the truth but didn't feel the reality of it.  The little quote helped remind me of the truth and helped encourage me to hold onto the truth with an expectation of the fact that He makes all things beautiful in His time (Ecc. 3:11).  The company that made this journal has a slogan on the back cover, "It's all about you."  We have had a recurring theme in our accountability group that, "It's not about me; it's all about You."  So those words were a reminder of that as well.  This journal also has beautifully colored and decorated pages.   This is the first time I've had a journal with pages that weren't white.  To me, it was a little reminder that God has put as much effort into the creation of me as He did into the creation of all the intricacies in nature all around me.  I'm not just "plain white", I'm a beautiful creation in the works.  Having a journal that's pretty or has some little meaning to me just adds a special touch -- kind of like icing on the cake.  Not necessary, but nice.

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